UK lawmakers seek AI bill to protect rights and privacy

A cross-party group on Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights has urged the government to introduce a new AI Bill to address threats to human rights, privacy and access to redress. The committee warned that current UK legal and regulatory structures are not equipped to prevent or respond to risks from AI, and said existing laws focus on system users rather than developers.

Labour MP Alex Sobel, the committee’s chair, said AI is developing with speed and complexity that makes its effects difficult to predict, leaving the UK unprepared for potentially serious consequences. He called for legislation covering the full AI supply chain and lifecycle, alongside a single regulator with powers to set policy, monitor performance and enforce compliance.

The committee recommended a risk-based regime with tougher obligations for higher risk systems and models, mandatory transparency across the technology’s lifecycle, and outright bans on uses incompatible with human rights. It also called for an independent oversight body able to monitor harms and hold providers accountable.

The report follows warnings from industry leaders about the pace of AI development. Anthropic chief Dario Amodei said AI has been advancing faster since this summer and raised concern that within six to 12 months, it could be capable of leading a swarm that could take over the entire internet.