PRESS RELEASE : UN Human Rights Council 56 – UK statement on New and Emerging Technologies [July 2024]

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 2 July 2024.

UK statement for Interactive Dialogue on the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights Report on New and Emerging Technologies. Delivered at 56th HRC.

Thank you, Madame Vice-President,

The United Kingdom welcomes the OHCHR report, and work in this area. We recognise that the development, deployment and use of new and emerging technologies have profound implications for the enjoyment of human rights. That’s why the UK wants the Global Digital Compact to reinforce that existing international law and international human rights law applies online as it does offline, and to champion the positive potential of digital technologies to enable human rights.

Last year the UK hosted a dialogue at Wilton Park on New and Emerging Technology and Human Rights. The outcomes of the dialogue included a recommendation that encouraged governments, businesses and civil society to map and prioritise specific human rights risks in the context of new and emerging technologies, and to work together to better target collective efforts. Global cooperation is vital for ensuring that both technologies and the rules governing their use are developed in a way that safeguards human rights.

The UK welcomes further recommendations from the OHCHR on how we can take concrete measures to ensure a multi-stakeholder approach for protecting and promoting human rights in the field of new and emerging technologies.

Thank you.