A report published this week shows that AI lobbyists have had an huge and unequal access to government over the last two years compared to any others. 84% of ministerial stakeholder meetings on data centres were with business or private-sector trade associations whereas ministers met with no environmental NGOs and not a single community group prior to designation of an AI Growth Zone.
The report comes as questions remain about the protections for water, energy and climate impacts contained in Chancellor John Healey’s announcement of a data centre covenant which was broadly welcomed by the AI industry in a context of escalating opposition to data centres across the UK.
Rachel Millward, Green Party Deputy Leader said:
“Labour is diving headfirst into AI without a roadmap, charmed by corporate lobbyists while community and green voices are shut out. We need to slam the brakes on new data centres before they drain our water supplies and wreck the UK’s carbon budget.
“When policy is written by corporations, decisions benefit shareholder profits rather than the public good. It’s a dangerous lack of oversight, proven by a recent FOI showing the government doesn’t even know what current data centres are being used for.”
Report authors Spotlight on Corruption also highlight that not a single environmental group sits on the government’s AI Energy Council even though the group has a mandate “to support the use of sustainable energy to power AI” and that the group met only once in the 17 months from its establishment in January 2025 to July 2026.