Starmer to send AI tech teams into government departments

Prime minister Keir Starmer plans to abolish NHS England, bringing the NHS back under the control of ministers, and pledges to increase the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in government.

In a speech setting out his plans for overhauling government, Starmer said people want an active government – and he is willing to deliver.

“The good news is technology can massively help if we push forward with digital reform of government, and we are going to do that,” he said. “There are up to £45bn worth of savings and productivity benefits ready to be realised.”

One of the ways Starmer plans to do so is by utilising AI, saying that no person’s time should be spent on a task if digital technology or AI can do it better and quicker.

“AI is a golden opportunity, and that’s an opportunity we’re determined to seize,” he said. “So we’re going to get the best of the best on AI working across government. I’m going to send teams into every government department with a clear mission from me to make the state more innovative and more efficient.”

The government is also bringing in a new apprenticeship scheme, called TechTrack, which aims to bring 2,000 apprentices into government departments by 2030, estimating that by then, one in 10 civil servants will be in a digital role.

Commenting on the move, science and technology secretary Peter Kyle said: “There is a £45bn jackpot to secure if we use technology properly across our public sector – but we can’t hope to come close to securing that if we don’t have the right technical talent with us in government.

“Not only will these changes help fix our public services, but they will save taxpayer cash by slashing the need for thousands of expensive contractors and create opportunities across the country across the country as part of our Plan for Change.”

Starmer also promised to crack down on barriers to innovation that result from regulations and minimise red tape.

“This is not about questioning the dedication or the effort of civil service. It’s about the system we’ve got in place, and that system was created by politicians. The buck stops with us. Over a number of years, politicians have chosen to hide behind vast arrays of plans, arm’s-length bodies, reviews, you name it, using taxpayer money to stop the government delivering on taxpayer priorities,” he said.

In his plans to cut bureaucracy, Starmer announced he would scrap one of those arm’s-length bodies – NHS England.

“I’m bringing management of the NHS back into democratic control by abolishing the arm’s-length body NHS England,” he said.

Answering a question from the audience following his speech, Starmer said one of the reasons for scrapping NHS England was to avoid duplication.

“If you can believe it, we’ve got a communications team in NHS England, we’ve got a communications team in the health department of government; we’ve got a strategy team in NHS England, a strategy team in the government department. We are duplicating things that could be done once,” he said.

“If we strip that out, which is what we are doing today, that then allows us to free up that money to put it where it needs to be, which is the front line.”

Speaking in the House of Commons following Starmer’s speech, health and social care secretary Wes Streeting called NHS England the “world’s biggest quango”. And called the abolishment of the organisation the “final nail in the coffin of the Conservatives’ disastrous top-down organisation.”