When UK ministers and civil servants drew up plans to roll out massive artificial intelligence data centres across the country, they held 137 meetings with commercial businesses and not a single one with environmental organisations. A year-long investigation by the non-profit Spotlight on Corruption revealed that policymaking for the country's flagship "AI growth zones" was shaped almost exclusively by industry figures, despite unresolved disputes over the facilities' immense electricity requirements and environmental costs.
The findings, drawn from 40 freedom of information requests across 18 state agencies between July 2024 and June 2026, also exposed a significant revolving door between Whitehall and tech firms. Over that period, 38 ministers, senior civil servants, and special advisers took jobs in the artificial intelligence sector, including at OpenAI and Anthropic. Nearly a quarter of those officials departed from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the central body responsible for Britain's AI strategy.
The policy was initially pitched under former prime minister Keir Starmer as a way to turbocharge economic growth through vast regional server hubs. However, the underlying assumptions behind the expansion have drawn intense scrutiny, with departmental forecasts diverging sharply on how much power the centres will consume and whether promised renewable supplies are feasible. Public resistance has also spread on the ground, sparking protests against planned sites from the rural Scottish village of Auchtertool to Brick Lane in east London.
Researchers noted that comparable countries, such as Germany, Canada, and Australia, adopted more stringent environmental criteria and consulted far more widely before approving large-scale facilities. In response, a government spokesperson maintained that ministers meet with technology firms to ensure projects create local jobs and prioritise clean energy, adding that community impacts and benefits continue to be evaluated through local planning processes.