UK science advisers ask government to name its important datasets
Advice to ministers on AI sovereignty puts data beside computing and skills, and asks for access to be tested in health and creative data.
Picture made for ABUREAU.
On 19 October 2026 the UK published advice from its Council for Science and Technology on AI sovereignty. The council defines sovereignty as having enough agency across the AI chain to deliver the outcomes the UK chooses, capture the value for the UK and stay resilient under pressure. Data is one of the capabilities it names, with skills, organisations and technical strengths.
Its third recommendation begins with a plain line: data is one of the UK's most important assets, but only valuable when it is managed, secured and used effectively. It asks government to identify important UK datasets and to test access arrangements in at least two high-value areas, such as health and creative data. It also suggests each pilot should ask what sovereign data the country holds.
This is advice, not policy. The paper names no datasets and does not describe how access would work. Even so, it points to a question owners of valuable data may soon be asked: what do you hold, in what condition, and on what terms could it be used. Records that are well described and securely held are easier to answer for.
