Recent conflicts in the Middle East have highlighted the growing threat posed by low-cost, massed drone attacks. Directed Energy Weapons (DEW) have the potential to provide a highly effective and cost-effective response to these threats, which is why the Ministry of Defence is investing £490 million over the next four years to bring these capabilities into service. DEW technologies have the potential to operate across a range of operational environments and roles. The Department continues to assess the most effective ways to deploy and integrate directed energy weapons across different environments and platforms to address threats and meet evolving military requirements.

Emerging technologies, including AI and self-driving vehicles, will change some jobs but also create new opportunities, boost productivity and improve working lives.

Self-driving vehicle deployment will be gradual and subject to robust regulation. Automated Passenger Services pilot permits require the consent of the relevant local licensing authority or franchising body and the Government will build the evidence base through small-scale deployments, while supporting innovation and economic growth.

The Government will continue to engage closely with industry and the workforce to manage the potential risks and maximise the opportunities created by new technologies.

Full implementation of the Automated Vehicles Act in the second half of 2027 will help ensure that any automated vehicles operating on Great Britain’s roads can contribute to overall improvements in road safety.

This technology is expected to be deployed gradually, and overall uptake will depend on a range of factors, including operators being able to meet very high regulatory standards, commercial deployment models, local consent for automated passenger services and the pace of market development.

For these reasons, the overall uptake of automated vehicles is highly uncertain so no estimate of the proportion of vehicle miles which will be automated by 2035 has been made.

The Automated Passenger Services Accessibility Advisory Panel (APS AAP) is not an Arm's Length Body. It is a non-statutory panel of independent experts.

The Disabled Person’s Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC), the longstanding independent expert committee established by the Transport Act 1985, also continues to provide advice to the government on APS.

As autonomous vehicles become commonplace in Defence’s Research, Development and Planning, the investment in the digital testing, simulation and virtual development environments is often bespoke to the nature and role of the capability and integrated into the overall cost of the project. This work takes place across the MOD and there is no central record of the MOD’s spend on these environments.

The Automated Vehicles Act 2024 established the legal framework for regulating automated vehicles in the UK. In May 2026, the Department for Transport established a new Automated Passenger Services (APS) permitting scheme, creating a clear legal route for commercial pilot deployments.

These pilots are an important opportunity to improve regulatory and public understanding ahead of full implementation of the Automated Vehicles Act in the second-half of 2027.

Automated Vehicles technology continues to develop with major global players expressing interest in bringing automated passenger services to GB. Further to this, the UK’s Code of Practice for UK trialling continues to support research and development of technologies, including for wider use cases.

The UK is taking a leading role at the United Nations Commission for Europe (UNECE) in the development of international vehicle regulations on automated vehicles. The Department for Transport co-chairs the Informal Working Group which is developing an internationally harmonised regulation on vehicle automated driving systems (ADS). The regulation is technologically neutral and is based on safety assurance approaches which will allow for innovation and technological developments. We anticipate applying this regulation through GB vehicle type approval.

The Automated Vehicles Act 2024 established the legal framework for regulating automated vehicles in the UK. By taking an outcomes-focused approach to safety assurance, it establishes a flexible, futureproof framework that can be adapted in line with technological developments.

The Government is now developing the secondary legislation which will set the detailed, technical requirements to support testing, validation and assurance of the vehicles and responsible regulated bodies. We are actively consulting experts from industry, road safety groups and academia to ensure the regulations are future-proofed and that learnings from early automated vehicle deployments are captured.

Through the Automated Vehicles Act Implementation Programme, officials from the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles are working with the Motor Insurers' Bureau on insurance for automated vehicles. This includes assessing the adequacy of the insurance and compensation framework to ensure that victims of collisions with uninsured automated vehicles have a clear route to compensation.

The Defence Artificial Intelligence Centre (DAIC) plays a central role in enabling and coordinating AI adoption across Defence. While digital testing and simulation environments are an important part of developing autonomous systems, including autonomous vehicles, these are typically delivered and funded by organisations such as the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) and delivery teams within the National Armaments Director Group (NADG). DAIC supports this activity through the provision of frameworks, data and expertise, but investment decisions for specific testing and simulation environments sit with the relevant delivery organisations.

On 22 May 2026, the Automated Passenger Services (APS) permitting scheme, introduced under the Automated Vehicles Act 2024, formally opened for applications. The scheme is intended to support small-scale pilot deployments, enabling operators to pilot these services and assess their commercial viability in Great Britain.

In March 2026, my department published non-statutory guidance for applicants, first responders, and local authorities and transport bodies to support understanding of the APS scheme.

Implementation of the full regulatory framework remains on track for 2027, creating a clear, legal environment for the wider uptake of self-driving technology on Great Britain’s roads.

The UK is taking a leading role at the United Nations Commission for Europe (UNECE) in the development of international vehicle regulations on automated vehicles. Through setting internationally harmonised requirements we are ensuring consistent safety requirements are adopted globally and that the UK remains up to date with international technological developments.

The Automated Vehicles Act 2024 established the legal framework for regulating automated vehicles in the UK. By taking an outcomes-focused approach to safety assurance, it establishes a flexible, futureproof framework that can be adapted in line with technological developments.

The Government is now developing the secondary legislation which will set the detailed, technical requirements. Officials are actively consulting experts from industry, road safety groups and academia to ensure the regulations are futureproofed and that learnings from early automated vehicle deployments are captured.

Trials of automated vehicles must be undertaken in line with the requirements set out in the Automated Vehicle Trialling Code of Practice. Trialling organisations must have a safety driver monitoring both the road traffic environment and vehicle systems so that they may resume proper control if necessary.

The Code should be used by trialling organisations in conjunction with detailed knowledge of the legal, regulatory and technological landscape, ensuring they are compliant with all relevant UK law.

To trial vehicles without a safety driver, companies must obtain an exemption from existing regulations through a Vehicle Special Order. And in order to operate a passenger carrying service, companies are also expected to obtain an Automated Passenger Services permit.

Should a company submit an application to operate a without a safety driver, the Department would conduct an extensive safety and security assessment which would include scrutiny of operational resilience and data management.

Trials of automated vehicles must be undertaken in line with the requirements set out in the Automated Vehicle Trialling Code of Practice. Trialling organisations must have a safety driver monitoring both the road traffic environment and vehicle systems so that they may resume proper control if necessary.

The Code should be used by trialling organisations in conjunction with detailed knowledge of the legal, regulatory and technological landscape, ensuring they are compliant with all relevant UK law.

To trial vehicles without a safety driver, companies must obtain an exemption from existing regulations through a Vehicle Special Order. And in order to operate a passenger carrying service, companies are also expected to obtain an Automated Passenger Services permit.

Should a company submit an application to operate a without a safety driver, the Department would conduct an extensive safety and security assessment which would include scrutiny of operational resilience and data management.

Trials of automated vehicles must be undertaken in line with the requirements set out in the Automated Vehicle Trialling Code of Practice. Trialling organisations must have a safety driver monitoring both the road traffic environment and vehicle systems so that they may resume proper control if necessary.

The Code should be used by trialling organisations in conjunction with detailed knowledge of the legal, regulatory and technological landscape, ensuring they are compliant with all relevant UK law.

To trial vehicles without a safety driver, companies must obtain an exemption from existing regulations through a Vehicle Special Order. And in order to operate a passenger carrying service, companies are also expected to obtain an Automated Passenger Services permit.

Should a company submit an application to operate a without a safety driver, the Department would conduct an extensive safety and security assessment which would include scrutiny of operational resilience and data management.