The new Regulatory Innovation Office (RIO), hosted within DSIT, has been established by the Government. The RIO will aim to reduce the burden for businesses hoping to bring new products and services to the market in some of the UK’s fastest-growing sectors through the implementation of innovations.
To do so, it will support regulators to update regulation, speeding up approvals, and ensuring different regulatory bodies work together smoothly. It will work to continuously inform the government of regulatory barriers to innovation, set priorities for regulators which align with the government’s broader ambitions and support regulators to develop the capability they need to meet them and grow the economy.
The RIO’s mission will initially support the growth of four fast-growing areas of technology making a difference to people’s lives before backing further technologies and sectors as the Office evolves. The area most pertinent to BIVDA is Artificial Intelligence and digital in healthcare, which the Government sees as vital in speeding up diagnoses, making hospitals more efficient and improving patient outcomes. RIO will support the healthcare sector to deploy AI innovations safely.
The new office will also bring regulators together and working to remove obstacles and outdated regulations to the benefit of businesses and the public, unlocking the power of innovation from these sectors to generate tens of billions of pounds for the UK economy in the coming years.
