British Politicians Use Metaverse To Present Blockchain And Web3 Industry Visions

Natalie Elphicke, member of parliament and chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) appeared in the form of a metaverse. (photo; Twitter @NatalieElphicke ·)

JAKARTA - A group of British politicians took advantage of the metaverse to convey the vision of the UK blockchain and Web3 industry to global leaders in a meeting involving 51 countries on September 20. They explain the opportunities and challenges faced by Web3 technology.

Natalie Elphicke, a member of parliament and chair of the new All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Blockchain Technology, emerged as her unique avatar in the metaverse, where she stressed the importance of the latest internet iteration.

"Web3 is a paradigm shift that reimagizes the basic structure of the internet itself," Elphicke said, quoted by Cointelegraph.

As chair of the APPG on blockchain technologies, I was pleased that me and Avatar Natalie could join the British Blockchain Association’s Global Summit today to give a keynote speech - held in the metaverse. @Brit_blockchain @APPGBlock pic.twitter.com/hDriQA5rAv

— Natalie Elphicke MP (@NatalieElphicke) September 20, 2023

As chairman of the APPG on blockchain technologies, I was pleased that me and Avatar Natalie could join the British Blockchain Association's Global Summit today to give a keynote speech - held in the metaverse. @Brit_blockchain @APPGBlock pic.twitter.com/hDriQA5rAv

In his speech, Elphicke said that Britain has the potential to become a "smart country" supported by blockchain, but noted that the country is "disadvantaged by competitors" in terms of work related to blockchain.

England's first national priority is the growth of the Web3 industry and labor planning. "One of them is to make Britain an attractive center for founders, developers, programmers, and Web3 companies to work here," he added.

Elphicke has asked for more national blockchain roadmaps and cooperation between countries, noting that to date, less than 12 countries have published roadmaps.

He said one of the other priorities was to continue the National Blockchain Roadmap published in 2021. The roadmap sets ambitions to build blockchain-based "digital states", with this technology being implemented in climate mitigation efforts, industrial symbiotic networks, and digital identity programs.

Politicians from the Conservative Party also talk about DeFi, stating that this presents "unique challenges and opportunities for regulators and policymakers," before adding that "ensuring transparency, auditability and accountability in this ecosystem is very important."

He also talked about tokenization of real-world assets. "It is undeniable that our world is being tokenized," he said. "Physical assets are being tokenized, and this trend will only continue to grow from here."

However, on September 19, the Online Safety Bill, which aims to regulate certain internet services in the UK, including activities in the metaverse, was approved by parliament.