Skip to main content
Hello! We use cookies to improve your experience by providing insights into how the site is being used. Find out more.

To: The Rt Hon Peter Kyle MP Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology

AI says NO: Tell Keir Starmer that people, not machines should oversee life-changing decisions

This campaign has ended.

The Government’s Data (Use and Access) Bill needs to be amended to protect our right to decide whether people or machines make decisions that impact our lives


Why is this important?

Clause 80 of the Government’s Data (Use and Access) Bill could strip away your right to decide whether people or machines make decisions that impact our lives.

Big Tech and Whitehall are eager to cut costs by using AI algorithms to make crucial decisions about you. Soon, computers—not people—could determine the outcome of your benefit claims, job applications, or mortgage approvals.

Right now, UK GDPR protects your right not to be simply subjected to life-changing decisions made solely by machines. You will be forced to prove a mistake has been made when machines get it wrong. We need to ensure that we decide whether people — not just machines — make life-changing decisions about us. 

Computers do make mistakes. In 2019, an algorithm misgraded the A-level results of thousands of students – as a result 40% came out lower than expected. Uber was sued after the company used an algorithm to ‘robo-fire’ many of its drivers, and problems with the Post Office Horizon system resulted in hundreds of people being wrongly prosecuted. 

With the increased use of AI by companies and government departments, we can expect automated decision-making to increase. 

We need to be able to decide if we want humans or machines to determine life-changing decisions.




Category

Links

Campaign Website

Updates

2025-05-21 15:17:31 +0100

Thank you so much for supporting the campaign to stop Clause 80 of the Government’s Data (Use and Access) Bill from stripping away our right to choose whether people or machines make life-changing decisions about us.

We submitted the petition to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and to Peter Kyle MP, Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, urging them to act on your concerns.

We’re pleased to share that we’ve won a key concession: The Government has agreed that the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) should produce a Code of Practice on the use of automated decision-making — and we’ll be actively engaging with the ICO on its creation.

This is a big step forward. But, we’re not done yet — Join the Open Rights Group to keep fighting for your rights ! --> https://www.openrightsgroup.org/join/ <--

2025-02-06 12:33:43 +0000

1,000 signatures reached

2024-12-10 13:16:04 +0000

500 signatures reached

2024-11-20 11:55:55 +0000

100 signatures reached

2024-11-19 21:14:08 +0000

50 signatures reached

2024-11-19 17:40:47 +0000

25 signatures reached

2024-11-19 15:16:17 +0000

10 signatures reached