The European Parliament’s Committee on Legal Affairs has urged the EU Commission to implement new rules for the fast-paced field of robotics, to help deal with issues such as those arising from accidents involving driverless vehicles or drones.
MEPs stress that EU-wide rules are needed to fully exploit the economic potential of robotics and artificial intelligence and guarantee a standard level of safety and security. MEPs urged the Commission to consider creating a European agency for robotics and artificial intelligence to supply public authorities with technical, ethical and regulatory expertise.
They also propose a voluntary ethical conduct code to regulate who would be accountable for the social, environmental and human health impacts of robotics and ensure that they operate in accordance with legal, safety and ethical standards.
Mady Delvaux, rapporteur, Socialist and Democrats, Luxembourg, said, “A growing number of areas of our daily lives are increasingly affected by robotics. In order to address this reality and to ensure that robots are, and will remain in the service of humans, we urgently need to create a robust European legal framework.”
Delvaux’s report, approved by 17 votes to two, with two abstentions, looks at robotics-related issues such as liability, safety and changes in the labor market. The full house will vote on the draft proposals in February 2017, which will need to be approved by absolute majority according to the legislative initiative procedure.
January 17, 2017