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Following the formation of a Labour government earlier this month, the King’s Speech set out the Government’s legislative agenda and provided a good indication of its priorities for the upcoming Parliamentary Session and beyond. So, what have we made of the King’s Speech and its implications for the Internet?
The Digital Information and Smart Data Bill will seek to establish digital verification services, supporting the creation and adoption of secure and trusted digital identity products and services from certified providers to help with things like moving house, pre-employment checks and buying age-restricted goods and services. Alongside this, it will look to strengthen the Information Commissioner’s Office’s powers, including promoting standards for digital identities around privacy, security and inclusion. We’ll be following what this might mean for Nominet, members and wider stakeholders, and what impact it might have – if any – on the process of registering and administering .UK domains.
The Cyber Security and Resilience Bill aims to strengthen the UK’s cyber security landscape, expanding the remit of existing regulation, putting regulators on stronger footing and increasing reporting requirements to build a better picture of cyber threats, particularly ransomware. Existing UK regulations through the Network and Information Systems Regulations 2018 have been superseded in the EU by NIS2, due to take effect in October 2024 across EU member states. Background notes on the new Cyber Security and Resilience Bill suggest that the UK regulation needs an urgent update to ensure our infrastructure and economy are not comparably more vulnerable. Nominet will closely monitor this piece of legislation and engage proactively in the legislative process.
The new Product Safety and Metrology Bill notes that the majority of the UK’s product safety framework is derived from EU law. This Bill will enable the UK to make the sovereign choice to mirror or diverge from updated EU rules in the future, with the aim of maintaining high product safety while supporting businesses and economic growth. This will include ensuring the responsibilities of online marketplaces involved in the supply of products are clearer, to better protect consumers and increase their confidence in the products they buy and who they buy them from. When taken together with digital verification services, this Bill could help support user confidence in interacting with products online.
Before the King’s Speech, there was a strong expectation that the Government would introduce a narrow AI Bill focused on legislating frontier AI models. Although this did not feature in the list of 40 Bills, Government did signal through the King’s Speech that it “will seek to establish the appropriate legislation to place requirements on those working to develop the most powerful artificial intelligence models”. This suggests the Government will consult further on AI legislation in the coming months before taking legislative action.
We’ll continue to track the Government’s legislative programme and consider what this means for Nominet and its stakeholders, as well as identifying opportunities to influence the legislation and wider policy landscape.
The post What does the King’s Speech mean for the Internet? appeared first on Nominet.
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Progression on the regulatory framework for digital identities
The Digital Information and Smart Data Bill will seek to establish digital verification services, supporting the creation and adoption of secure and trusted digital identity products and services from certified providers to help with things like moving house, pre-employment checks and buying age-restricted goods and services. Alongside this, it will look to strengthen the Information Commissioner’s Office’s powers, including promoting standards for digital identities around privacy, security and inclusion. We’ll be following what this might mean for Nominet, members and wider stakeholders, and what impact it might have – if any – on the process of registering and administering .UK domains.
Enhancing the protection of the digital economy against cyber attacks
The Cyber Security and Resilience Bill aims to strengthen the UK’s cyber security landscape, expanding the remit of existing regulation, putting regulators on stronger footing and increasing reporting requirements to build a better picture of cyber threats, particularly ransomware. Existing UK regulations through the Network and Information Systems Regulations 2018 have been superseded in the EU by NIS2, due to take effect in October 2024 across EU member states. Background notes on the new Cyber Security and Resilience Bill suggest that the UK regulation needs an urgent update to ensure our infrastructure and economy are not comparably more vulnerable. Nominet will closely monitor this piece of legislation and engage proactively in the legislative process.
Levelling the playing field between high street and online marketplaces
The new Product Safety and Metrology Bill notes that the majority of the UK’s product safety framework is derived from EU law. This Bill will enable the UK to make the sovereign choice to mirror or diverge from updated EU rules in the future, with the aim of maintaining high product safety while supporting businesses and economic growth. This will include ensuring the responsibilities of online marketplaces involved in the supply of products are clearer, to better protect consumers and increase their confidence in the products they buy and who they buy them from. When taken together with digital verification services, this Bill could help support user confidence in interacting with products online.
Nothing tangible on AI… yet
Before the King’s Speech, there was a strong expectation that the Government would introduce a narrow AI Bill focused on legislating frontier AI models. Although this did not feature in the list of 40 Bills, Government did signal through the King’s Speech that it “will seek to establish the appropriate legislation to place requirements on those working to develop the most powerful artificial intelligence models”. This suggests the Government will consult further on AI legislation in the coming months before taking legislative action.
We’ll continue to track the Government’s legislative programme and consider what this means for Nominet and its stakeholders, as well as identifying opportunities to influence the legislation and wider policy landscape.
The post What does the King’s Speech mean for the Internet? appeared first on Nominet.
Continue reading...
