Lib Dem Manifesto: Innovation that Benefits and Unites us
In our digital age, access to the internet is crucial for equal opportunities. In our liberal Europe, there will be no virtual borders. Through the EU we have abolished mobile phone roaming charges and restricted ‘geo-blocking’, so that British shoppers can buy goods and services from websites across the EU. We will continue to strengthen cross-border protections for consumers.
The EU has already made great steps towards building a Digital Single Market. We want to continue working within the EU to complete this, harnessing the full potential of innovative technologies and ensuring that people can enjoy the same digital benefits wherever they are in the EU. Liberal Democrats will encourage competition among companies in the digital space, and we will support the decisive use of European and UK competition powers to prevent the tech giants from exploiting consumers and to ensure innovation through competition.
We believe that the EU should be the first to create a solid legal framework for new technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence and others to be used in the economy and public life. Legislation should, however, be focused on applications that use these new technologies and not on the underlying technologies themselves, since this would otherwise limit innovation and the creation of new applications. We aim to make digital the default for all public service delivery, to increase efficiency and make services more accessible.
Addressing the issues of cyber-security, data protection and privacy is a top priority. There can be no digital society without these basic requirements being met.
Innovation is often driven by small and medium-sized enterprises that are the backbone of prosperity in Europe. We will continue to facilitate the creation of more jobs through easier access to finance, simpler rules for investment funds to support new, innovative businesses across Europe, encouraging knowledge and technology transfer from universities and research institutes, and greater opportunities for young entrepreneurs.
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