Motion #09
The rise of AI is transforming many industries. AI is now used in public domain and corporate sectors and concerns exist at individual, national and international levels. However, the potential for benefit from AI is enormous, encompassing most areas of society so good governance rather than prevention is our aim.
Insert into Record of Policy Statements:
POLICY STATEMENT on ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (also known as Machine Learning; referred to as AI throughout for ease of reading and to align with current EU, UN and UK Government publications)
The Green Party of England and Wales acknowledges that there are both existential threats and massive potential benefits for a sustainable future for humanity possible with the increasing prevalence of AI. We will introduce a precautionary regulatory system to avert the former and bring about the latter. In creating this regulatory framework we shall base much upon the EU AI Act and UNESCO recommendations, and aim to ensure UK legislation and practice aligns with this. We shall also foster international co-operation towards the establishment of a world-wide body that could oversee and police AI development globally.
Through regulation we will oversee that AI development is based on ethical principles for development and deployment so that systems using AI are safe, robust, transparent, accountable, and human-centric. Development will be regulated into producing systems that are socially and environmentally responsible, that include safeguards against inappropriate or under-age use, measures to address and rectify existing bias, discrimination and equality issues, measures that protect individual privacy and liberty, ways to rectify mistakes made and ways to allow use to be switched off or paused.
In paragraph 1, insert after “worldwide body that could oversee and police AI development globally.” the additional sentence “We will place deliberative and democratic decision making, and the voice of those most affected by AI technology development and adoption at the heart of any decision making and governance processes."
And In paragraph 2 after “Development will be regulated into producing systems that are socially and environmentally responsible, that include” insert “consultation and participatory decision making with those affected by AI systems, also "
And replace “measures that protect individual privacy and liberty” with “measures that protect the privacy and liberty of individuals and communities”
We neither aim nor wish to stifle the innovation and development of AI as an important sector of our economy nor to reduce the UK’s current status as one of the most advanced nations in this field. To this end our current research frameworks will be enhanced along with other developmental ideas including “sandboxes” for safe yet innovative trialling of AI systems.
In addition to preserving freedoms, personal safety and maintaining physical health for every individual to a standard similar to that enjoyed in the UK today, AI development and usage will be regulated to encourage and facilitate for all individuals the freedom to live a worthwhile life, devoting time in whatever proportions they choose to the following “seven C’s”: - Curiosity, Conservation, Challenge, Creativity, Community, Charity, Care.
Initial regulation will make mandatory that AI generated content identifies itself, i.e we will regulate to prevent any instance where someone may act on or be influenced by the product of AI system without being aware of this, or under the impression that the content is generated by another human. We see this as an essential safeguard of our democratic processes. Many of the pernicious uses currently available or foreseen including social media influencing, news media or voter manipulation, deep-faking, virtual friendship apps and others will be controlled by this.
From paragraph 2, delete the text ‘or under-age’
In paragraph 5, replace “identifies itself” with “is always clearly identified as such”
In paragraph 5, after “virtual friendship apps” insert “open-source AI based platforms“
We will enable uses of AI in the interests of national security and defence whilst avoiding an arms-race developing between ourselves and other nations, also ensuring that “human-in-the-loop” control is always required in accordance with our policies PSD541 and PSD421. We will prohibit the use of remote biometric identification in public spaces.
We will require that the burgeoning uses of AI within the commercial sphere put social and environmental priorities ahead of financial returns to shareholders in line with our economic policies. AI may well create a new pattern of distribution of wealth and earning power with the potential for a few to accrue a great deal while others lose out, so we shall ensure our tax policies are able to address this fairly.
We assert that every individual has a right to the ownership of their own identity in terms of appearance, sound and creative output. AI platforms that can generate written text, music, images or realistic films will automatically be subject to strong regulation which will make clear the way in which an individual can claim unfair use of their own creative output and curtail its continued use. More generally, copyright control may be extended so that AI providers compensate authors, musicians, artists and data producers such as published scientific data sets rather than assuming the internet is free. Data produced from publicly funded work might be freely consumed nationally and shared internationally.
In paragraph 8 replace “ownership of their identity” with “control of their identity”
And, replace “creative output” with “style of creative output”
After “curtail its continued use” add
“; the individual’s moral right to be recognised as creator of any work will be inalienable (i.e cannot be signed away).”
After “shared internationally” insert “in line with policy ST223.”
The many positive uses of AI that already exist in the field of healthcare, fostered by enabling many independent research initiatives from central funding, will continue to be grown and the framework for doing so shared into other spheres including education, local government, the judiciary, transport and utility management and infrastructure.
We acknowledge the great potential for AI usage to augment, not replace, many professionals such as doctors, teachers and lawyers to the benefit of those receiving their services, whilst still retaining the need for humans to make all key decisions. Additionally, we aim to make available training in AI literacy and use for all so that we can each make good use of AI, for example to create our own healthy lifestyle plans or individualised learning plans with AI assistance.
In recognition of the many concerns over jobs and livelihoods owing to AI development we will implement packages of job retraining support for those displaced. We also see the growth of AI as making more likely and more immediate the need for Universal Basic Income, which we will introduce, policy EC402. Far from being just a safety net, UBI is a start towards enabling people to break free from the current model where so many labour essentially to benefit already wealthy shareholders and propagate our destructive levels of consumption. Universal Basic Income we see as a starting place for allowing us all to develop harmonious lives in which we feel enriched and valued beyond our current market-orientated measures; this truly is the potential of AI to transform our society and individual experience for the better, which we strive to bring into being.
In the first paragraph, replace
“both existential threats and massive potential benefits”
with
“threats and potential benefits”
And after “prevalence of AI.”
insert the sentence
“We recognise significant concerns about current harms created by inadequately regulated adoption of AI technologies, noting in particular the impacts of AI bias on minority communities, the environmental costs of AI usage, and the impacts on workers. We note concerns about potential existential threats from AI.”
followed by a paragraph break.
And, replace from “We will introduce a precautionary principle…’ to ‘…aligns with this’ with the updated text:
“We will introduce a precautionary regulatory system to address the harms and risk of AI and secure equitable access to the benefits these technologies can bring. In creating this regulatory framework we shall base much upon the EU AI Act (ref 1), UNESCO recommendations (ref 2), the Global Green Congress Emergency Resolution on AI Regulation (ref 3) and aim to ensure UK legislation and practice aligns with these.”
And add the following references to the end of the motion. “References 1 – https://artificialintelligenceact.eu/ 2 - https://ircai.org/project/the-unesco-recommendation-on-the-ethics-of-ai/ 3 – https://globalgreens.org/gg_resolution/emergency-resolution-effective-regulation-of-ai-technology-for-democracy-sustainability-and-social-good/”
And in paragraph 6 replace “We will prohibit the use of remote biometric identification in public spaces.” with “We will regulate the use of biometric identification, including prohibiting its use in public spaces.”
And in paragraph 10, after “humans to make all key decisions.”
insert “We will regulate to ensure that wherever automated decision making significantly affects people's lives, this is done with care and humanity, and with speedy access to mechanisms for correction and redress.”