Inline Insights

This is one of a series of blogs on how public policy is made in the UK. In this first blog, we look at how policies are created and what happens before they are brought to Parliament as a legislative bill.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt has published his Autumn Statement, outlining the UK Government’s fiscal policies for the next five years. The statement includes a number of measures of interest for the tech sector, which we summarise below.

Once again, the UK has a new Prime Minister. What does this further leadership change mean for the UK’s tech ecosystem and regulatory environment? In this blog, Inline Policy illuminates where a Rishi Sunak premiership could land on issues such as digital competition, data protection, online safety, net zero, artificial intelligence, innovation, and foreign relations.  

The Queen’s Speech on 10 May 2022 outlines all the Bills that the Government intends to introduce in the new Parliamentary session. It includes substantial tech policy reforms in areas in which the UK is diverging from EU policy for the first time. While there are various initiatives, they can broadly be categorised as, first, pro-innovation and pro-competition measures, and secondly, changes to improve the protection of consumers of tech. Here we take you through the main proposals.

With an increasing number of internet-connectable and interconnected devices, also known as the Internet of Things (IoT), being used in the UK, the Government has introduced the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Bill to protect these products. This blog will examine the bill, its potential impact, some criticisms of it, and the next steps in the legislative process.

Much of the focus on this weekend’s election results has been on the Conservative successes in the so-called red wall but less attention has been paid to the inroads by other parties in the Tory’s ‘blue wall’ in the south east of England. In this blog, Matt Niblett rings a warning bell for the Tories.

Preventing illegal hate speech online is a priority for policymakers worldwide, and the need to do so is increasingly evident. How can governments strike the right balance between tackling the mechanisms and incentives behind the proliferation of illegal hateful content online, while also ensuring that platforms do not enable censorship? A closer look at present and future debates demonstrates the intricacies of keeping an ever-growing number of internet users safe and preserving their fundamental rights.

As the UK prepares some of the most ambitious online harms legislation in the world, the unprecedented efforts taken by tech companies to curb the spread of COVID-19 falsehoods have raised a number of questions for regulators and policymakers. The UK may need to adapt its original stance on online harms in order to face the ‘new normal’.

California’s recent regulation to address perceived imbalances in the gig economy (known as AB5) has set tongues wagging about the future of companies like Uber and Lyft. Given Europe’s reputation for being tough on tech giants, is a similar intervention on this side of the Atlantic now inevitable?

The spread of tiny chips into more and more everyday items promises a cumulative leap in convenience for consumers and productivity for businesses. Yet as ever more consumer devices become hooked up to the internet and the line between hardware and software blurs, the question of consumer protection and the need for new consumer regulations will receive greater attention.

Once the political decision about Brexit is settled, the focus will move swiftly to the precise nature of the new relationship between the UK and the EU. The question of regulatory alignment or divergence will then take centre stage - with an uncertain outcome and potentially far-reaching implications for the tech sector.

The UK’s fast approaching elections will have major ramifications for businesses, citizens and Britain’s relationship with the rest of the world. Our one-page guide summarises where each of the major parties stands on the most important policy issues for the tech sector.

The December 2019 General election will be the fourth election or referendum to take place in the UK in the past five years. Yet despite the unusual timing and general voter fatigue, the stage is set for a high-stake drama: voters are given a last chance to determine whether Brexit ‘gets done’ under UK Prime Minister Johnson’s (Conservative) terms or if a change in direction is warranted.

Inline Policy was launched five years ago as the vision of our Founder, Shomik Panda. In this blog, Shomik reflects on the challenges of starting a business from scratch and some of the highlights of the past five years.

 In the latest sign of ramping up political interest in immersive technologies, the House of Common's Digital Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) Select Committee has announced an inquiry dedicated to finding out more about the sector, and determining possible avenues for future regulation.

Following the UK Government's outline of its approach to regulating the taxi and ride hailing sector, Inline has produced a guide to the most important changes coming down the line for companies operating in the space.

After all the talk about GDPR implementation last year, we are starting to come to the crunch point where companies' data practices are being tested by the regulators. The results could create continued regulatory headaches for data-intensive businesses.

The many and varied ways in which drones have already been deployed to aid the public sector are often overlooked. Some of the most significant examples include emergency services, environmental monitoring and protection, and infrastructure maintenance and inspection. 

While discussions continue on the European Commission’s proposals for a harmonised Digital Services Tax, a number of different approaches to taxing online service providers and platforms is emerging across Europe.  With the UK the latest EU country to consider going it alone, we look at who is proposing what when it comes to digital services taxes.