Introduction & Definitions

LOTI have developed a Capabilities Framework that details the different capabilities that we think councils could focus on to become more ethical and responsible users of both data and AI technologies.

Each capability comes with specific resources and examples that we have collected from different organisations. As such, this Framework is contextualising the work that already exists from local government and other sectors.

Each recommendation comes with specific actions to inform how a borough or other local government organisation might deliver on it.

The capabilities have also been given a suggested maturity level by LOTI, as we try to help organisations understand what capabilities that they might want to focus on given what they are already doing (see homepage). 

This toolkit was originally published in September 2022, and focused on data ethics. Since then, the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) as a technology that many councils want to explore, has caused LOTI to update this framework.  As many of the capabilities overlap or are the same, and because AI is fundamentally built on data, we have consolidated the two in this new framework. As such, there will be some moments where we expand in more detail around AI specifically, or mention other data technologies that are not AI.

Definitions

LOTI’s definition of ‘data ethics’ builds on that provided by the Open Data Institute. Data ethics relates to good practices around how data is collected, used and shared. It is especially relevant when data activities have the potential to impact people and society, directly or indirectly. In the context of local government, t

‘Responsible AI’ therefore refers to how we build or adopt AI solutions in a safe, ethical and legal way.

What is the relationship between ‘ethics’ and the law and compliance?

Councils are already subject to legal regulation, the compliance of which goes a considerable distance to assuring that they are being ethical. For example, the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), or the Public Sector Equalities Duty, detail legal commitments that are themselves ethical.

As such, compliance with the law should be the first and most obvious (although not easy) set of capabilities that councils attend to. In particular, LOTI’s 7-step framework for Information Governance and other IG resources are great places to start to understand information governance processes that are grounded in compliance.

However, there may still be areas in which councils may wish to act in a certain way because of moral obligations that are not detailed explicitly in the law. This is primarily for two reasons:

1. Emerging technologies like data and AI can generate moral challenges before the law can catch up;
2. Even if the law catches up, there will always be moral considerations or responsibilities that are not covered by the law, that organisations will need to navigate for themselves if they want to do them in a rigorous way;

As such, this Data Ethics and Responsible AI framework details some of the capabilities that a council may wish to adopt to help them consistently navigate some of these ethical challenges that may emerge when using data or AI.