Read our 10 questions for UK Labour's AI policy

Labour’s escalating claims around the potential use of AI in government, such as in this speech by the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, are borne out of relatable constraints and welcome ambition for the UK.

But we are deeply concerned that in an effort to increase efficiency and find savings, the UK could end up wasting £100s of millions of public money in failed projects. This risks damaging public services - and ultimately holding the UK back - rather than taking the opportunity to make them fit for the future.

It might sound like a silver bullet but we can’t just shoehorn AI into existing services.

Here are 10 questions that we believe the Government needs to demonstrate it has answers to before signing away millions of pounds of taxpayer’s money with no break clause on the contracts if things go wrong.

📌 1 Are the technology and the data ready and if not how much will it cost to make them ready before AI can be used?
📌2 Are the needs of the public or public servants expected to benefit from new AI technology sufficiently well understood?
📌3 Are staff ready and trained to use AI technologies - if not how much will this cost and how long will it take?
📌4 Has proper evaluation been done of the jobs required to make use of AI as well as those that can be cut?
📌5 By what process will the impact of AI use in government be evaluated?
📌6 What mechanisms exist to make corrections when things go wrong?
📌7 What processes exist for frontline workers to contribute expertise and raise concerns about the impact of AI use in government?
📌8 What steps are being taken to avoid locking the UK into expensive contracts which cannot be easily undone if the technology doesn’t deliver?
📌9 What parliamentary oversight will there be of new AI systems which make decisions affecting the quality of life of people in the UK?
📌10 How will you trial and gradually introduce changes to avoid the risk of going too far too fast and losing valuable expertise?