House of Lords pushes back against government’s AI plans
The government has suffered another setback in the House of Lords over its plans to let artificial intelligence firms use copyright-protected work without permission.An amendment to the data bill requiring AI companies to reveal which copyrighted material is used in their models was backed by peers, despite government opposition.It is the second time parliament’s upper house has demanded tech companies make clear whether they have used copyright-protected content.The vote came days after hundreds of artists and organisations including Paul McCartney, Jeanette Winterson, Dua Lipa and the Royal Shakespeare Company urged the prime minister not to “give our work away at the behest of a handful of powerful overseas tech companies”.The amendment was tabled by crossbench peer Beeban Kidron and was passed by 272 votes to 125.
The bill will now return to the House of Commons.If the government removes the Kidron amendment, it will set the scene for another confrontation in the Lords next week.Lady Kidron said: “I want to reject the notion that those of us who are against government plans are against technology.Creators do not deny the creative and economic value of AI, but we do deny the assertion that we should have to build AI for free with our work, and then rent it back from those who stole it.“My lords, it is an assault on the British economy and it is happening at scale to a sector worth £120bn to the UK, an industry that is central to the industrial strategy and of enormous cultural import.
”The government’s copyright proposals are the subject of a consultation due to report back this year, but opponents of the plans have used the data bill as a vehicle for registering their disapproval.The main government proposal is to let AI firms use copyright-protected work to build their models without permission, unless the copyright holders signal they do not want their work to be used in that process – a solution that critics say is impractical and unworkable.Sign up to First EditionOur morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what’s happening and why it mattersafter newsletter promotionThe government insists, however, that the present situation is holding back both the creative and tech sectors and needs to be resolved by new legislation.It has already tabled one concession in the data bill, by committing to an economic impact assessment of its proposals.A source close to the tech secretary, Peter Kyle, said this month that the “opt out” scenario was no longer his preferred option but one of several being given consideration.
A spokesperson for the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology said the government would not rush any decisions on copyright or bring forward related legislation “until we are confident that we have a practical plan which delivers on each of our objectives”,
Bentley warns its car sales to US still frozen amid tariff cut confusion
The British luxury carmaker Bentley has said sales to the US remain frozen as customers wait for lower tariffs from the UK’s trade deal – with no sign yet of when the rates will start.The UK last week agreed a 10% tariff on 100,000 car exports to the US as part of a limited trade deal with Donald Trump. That would be significantly below the 25% extra levy imposed by the US on the rest of the world, but neither government has yet detailed how the deal will work in practice.Frank-Steffen Walliser, Bentley’s chief executive, said the wait for lower tariffs was “super-harming the business at the moment – nobody is moving”.Manufacturers still have no idea when the lower tariffs will be implemented or how the 100,000 cars allowed into the US at the lower tariff will be shared out among UK carmakers
M&S says some personal data was taken in cyber-attack
Marks & Spencer has revealed that some personal information relating to thousands of customers was taken in the cyber-attack that has crippled its online operation for more than three weeks.Since the retailer’s IT systems were hit by a ransomware attack over the Easter weekend, it has not been taking online orders, and the availability of some products in its stores has been affected after it took some of its systems offline in response.The company said on Tuesday that it now realised that some customer data had been accessed but this did not include usable payment or card details, or any account passwords. The Guardian understands the details taken are names, addresses and order histories.M&S said personal information had been accessed because of the “sophisticated nature of the incident”
US monthly inflation rate slows amid Trump tariffs
The pace of inflation slowed in April, the month that Donald Trump announced his sweeping “liberation day” tariffs on the US’s largest trading partners.The annual inflation rate was 2.3% in April, down from an annual rate of 2.4% March, according to a new inflation report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).Core inflation, which excludes volatile energy and food prices, hit an annual rate of 2
Thames Water finances were ‘hair raising’, chair tells MPs
The chair of Thames Water has admitted its finances were “hair raising”, as he said bosses were in line for “substantial” bonuses linked to an emergency £3bn loan.The UK’s biggest water company came within just five weeks of running out of money, Adrian Montague told MPs on Tuesday.“Thames in the last year has come very close to running out of money entirely,” he said. He added there were times when it only had weeks’ worth of cash left. “Running a £20bn corporation on five weeks’ liquidity, honestly, it’s hair raising
Gold fever makes a comeback as buyers and bankers recoil from uncertainty
New York’s famous Diamond District was teeming last week. But the subject on many minds in the city’s jewelry district was not diamonds but gold.Covid, Ukraine and now Donald Trump’s trade wars have all sparked new interest in gold – which can trace its history as a currency back to 600BC.On West 47th Street, gold trader Becky Algozhoeva at GT Findings was showing coins and ingots stamped with the Roman goddess Fortuna, also known as “Lady Fortuna”, to customers.“Regular people are thinking gold is the key
Nissan to shut seven factories, cutting 20,000 jobs worldwide
Nissan is to close seven factories with the loss of 20,000 jobs around the world, after a tumultuous year for the Japanese carmaker.As it slims down production, Nissan will make a further 11,000 job cuts, after 9,000 job losses announced in November, collectively reducing its workforce by 15%. The decision will affect staff and contractor jobs across manufacturing, sales and administration, as well as research and development.Nissan did not say which factories were due to shut. However, its factory at Sunderland in north-east England, the carmaker’s only factory in Europe and where it employs 6,000 people, is not thought to be a likely candidate for closure
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