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Starmer’s AI takeover: Unions warn ‘don’t blame civil servants’
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Under new rules, officials will be told to follow a modern-day ‘mantra’: “No person’s substantive time should be spent on a task where digital or AI can do it better, quicker and to the same high quality and standard.” Starmer believes this approach could free up a whopping £45bn through streamlined processes, even before AI is fully deployed. To support this plan, the Government will recruit 2,000 tech apprentices into the civil service.
Critics warn, however, that the “digital dreams” of the prime minister could lead to harsh cuts in spending and the scapegoating civil servants if it is not handled carefully. Critics claim that this is the same thing as Elon Musk’s US doge cutbacks, where civil servants are gradually phased out and replaced by AI. Is this the right decision for Britain? Will other European countries adopt the same policy?
The criticism of politicians has a negative impact on the morale within the civil service.
Starmer says the state has become “bigger, yet weaker”, and is failing to deliver what the public wants. He wants to cut the civil service by more than 10,000 people and has in mind a tougher performance management system and more performance-related compensation to eliminate underperformers.
Some have likened Starmer’s proposals to Donald Trump’s radical cull of US government workers under his Department of Government Efficiency – Doge – with the outspoken help of Elon Musk. The following are some of the ways to get in touch with each other a No 10 spokesperson rejects claims they are taking a ‘chainsaw to the system,’ calling such characterisations ‘juvenile.’
Starmer, for the moment, is upbeat and assures that the primary goal is to strengthen core service through AI. As he puts it: “There are up to £45bn worth of savings and productivity benefits, ready to be realised.” The question is whether his disruptive zeal can truly deliver a leaner, more efficient government – or if it will simply cut too deep and spark a high-tech headache for Whitehall.
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