MPs and Peers Tell UK to Stop Winging It on AI Regulation
Arthur T Knackerbracket writes:
UK lawmakers want an AI watchdog with the teeth to stop potentially dangerous systems reaching the public, warning that existing rules leave people exposed and struggling to hold anyone accountable.
The Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR) - comprising MPs and peers - said that although a number of laws and regulations apply to some AI systems, the overall legal landscape is patchy and confused. No single body coordinates regulation of AI, leaving gaps that could make it difficult for people harmed by AI to obtain legal redress.
Committee chair Alex Sobel MP said the speed and complexity of AI development made its impact hard to predict.
"What is clear is that at present we are unprepared to deal with its consequences however potentially dire they may be. Nowhere in the world, including the UK, has a current legislative and regulatory approach to AI that is fit for purpose. New legislation is needed to establish a comprehensive set of protections that deal with the entire AI supply chain and its lifecycle. A single AI regulator should be established to set policy, monitor performance and with the teeth to ensure enforcement."
[...] The report warned AI systems were prone to producing unfairly discriminatory outcomes, "which may arise from bias in the datasets on which they are trained as well as from the way they are developed and deployed. This threatens the human rights of people in the UK and elsewhere."
The MPs and peers recommended a risk-based approach, with lighter requirements for low-risk systems to avoid overburdening organizations using them.
The proposed AI bill should "mandate more demanding obligations for higher risk AI systems and models," the report said.
The committee also called for mandatory transparency requirements throughout the AI lifecycle.
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