The UK government has launched one of the world’s first national standards for algorithmic transparency.

The move comes after a review into algorithmic bias in decision-making by the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation (CDEI), which recommended the government place a mandatory transparency obligation on public sector organisations using algorithms to support significant decisions.

The new standard, which is organised into two tiers, will be trialled by a number of public sector organisations.

The first tier includes a short description of the algorithmic tool, including how and why it is being used, while the second includes more detailed information about how the tool works, the datasets that have been used to train the model, and the level of human oversight.

“Algorithms can be harnessed by public sector organisations to help them make fairer decisions, improve the efficiency of public services and lower the cost associated with delivery,” said Lord Agnew, minister of state at the Cabinet Office. “However, they must be used in decision-making processes in a way that manages risks, upholds the highest standards of transparency and accountability, and builds clear evidence of impact.”

Civil society organisations including The Alan Turing Institute and Ada Lovelace Institute, alongside international organisations like the OECD and Open Government Partnership, have long called for transparency around the use of AI systems.

They have pushed for greater transparency to help manage the risks associated with algorithmic decision-making, bring necessary scrutiny to the role of algorithms in decision-making processes, and help build public trust.

“Organisations are increasingly turning to algorithms to automate or support decision-making,” said Adrian Weller, programme director for AI, The Alan Turing Institute, and member of the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation’s advisory board. “We have a window of opportunity to put the right governance mechanisms in place as adoption increases.

“This is why I’m delighted to see the UK government publish one of the world’s first national algorithmic transparency standards. This is a pioneering move by the UK government, which will not only help to build appropriate trust in the use of algorithmic decision-making by the public sector, but will also act as a lever to raise transparency standards in the private sector.”

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