The #TradeBill has its 2nd Reading in the @UKHouseofLords today and we @FCC_UK are concerned about the lack of digital trade provisions where that has the potential to impact health and care in the U.K.

Provisions are needed to assuage concerns about privacy, patient safety as well as to help guarantee economic benefits flow from the next generation of data-driven health services.

The #TradeBill should include a carve-out for publicly funded data processing services so Government can maintain control of core functions of @NHSEngland and @NHSDigital - a pertinent National Treatment Limitation would be consistent with existing policy https://digital.nhs.uk/news-and-events/latest-news/nhs-digital-publishes-guidance-on-data-off-shoring-and-cloud-computing-for-health-and-social-care

The Government must negotiate new trade agreements with countries that subscribe to an increasingly protectionist approach to #IP - the effect of some provisions could be to reduce access to algorithms underpinning new data-driven treatments and technology in health and care

This is particularly concerning where developed countries seek restrictions on forced disclosure of digital technology and seek to treat source code and algorithms as trade secrets

We @FCC_UK would welcome provisions in both the #MedicinesandMedicalDevicesBill and the #TradeBill to ensure patients in the U.K. are safe as a growing number of algorithms and decision support tools with the potential to cause harm are developed by entrepreneurs in health.

Finally, the U.K. Government must not find itself in a position where it might be sued for taking decisions about the processing of publicly funded health data in future - control of health data is needed to deliver the economic growth per its Life Sciences Industrial Strategy

The #TradeBill should prevent Investor-State Dispute Settlement clauses being introduced to new trade agreements where they would impact policymaking, regulation or the provision of services underpinned by publicly funded healthcare data.