The Labour Party sets out a new AI plan to support the public sector and address long-term challenges
On the 13th of January 2025, Labour revealed a new AI plan to propel the UK to global tech-leadership heights.
Promising to prioritise artificial intelligence across key sectors like education and health is a good opportunity to tackle longstanding systemic challenges, provided we overcome concerns about data ethics to gain vital trust.
Labour’s AI plan: The AI prescription
Over the past 12 months, AI has fundamentally changed society, doing everything from generating content to streamlining repetitive jobs.
Therefore, the government’s decisive step towards embracing it is significant, particularly in struggling sectors like healthcare and education, where the incorporation of AI tools would allow overworked professionals to automate time-consuming tasks.
From improved scheduling and resource allocation to faster diagnostic assessments and stronger record management, the move could be transformative.
According to an independent NHS-funded evaluation, the AI-powered innovative triage system already adopted by specific primary-care teams within NHS England has reduced wait times by as much as 73%, just one example of how tech-powered progress could turn things around.
With the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) reporting almost 300 deaths per week in A&E departments due to 12-hour+ waiting times throughout 2023, a transition to greater automation could save lives.
Education, too, is set to benefit, with AI systems personalising learning for each student, for example. Often dealing with 30 students or more, teachers lack the time to adapt and pace content, something automated platforms can easily do to drive better results.
McKinsey’s analyses show that personalised learning paths generated by AI can boost student engagement by as much as 60%, mitigating behavioural issues and mental health struggles associated with in-class difficulties.
Beyond the classroom, AI can streamline administrative processes like marking and admissions, giving teaching staff more face-to-face time to support students, as automated systems provide early warnings on those at risk of dropping out. At a time when resources are stretched thin, this is an opportunity to claw back success by making education more efficient, equitable and impactful.
Achieving more with less
AI’s ability to maximise resources is valuable for public sector institutions operating under tight budgets. Automating repetitive tasks cuts direct costs and improves operational accuracy, reducing errors in areas like grading and patient records. In 2023, for instance, an NHS Digital report revealed that AI systems in radiology reduced diagnostic mistakes by 15% whilst processing scans 40% faster. What better solution for a government looking to save the NHS by reducing wait times and increasing patient satisfaction?
Of course, another key benefit of AI is the scalability it offers. When healthcare demand surges and student numbers rise, automated systems can easily expand their capacity without quality dwindling. This adaptability ensures essential services remain operational and resilient, even under pressure, so there is always a sustainable path forward.
Things can likewise be scaled down in the event of decreased demand, allowing organisations to eliminate unnecessary costs.
Beyond optimisation
AI’s potential extends beyond optimisation to innovation, too, particularly where researchers and developers have access to fundamental – and importantly, anonymised – public data to boost the creation of new tools.
By using advanced analytics, for example, those behind the AI revolution can uncover trends and opportunities that may otherwise go unaddressed or unnoticed. Likewise, predictive analytics on the ground can help services to anticipate surges in demand for better resource allocation. Such insights can even be relied upon to detect early signs of distress or disengagement, allowing for much more timely and effective interventions.
In this sense, AI has an unparalleled ability to reframe education and healthcare challenges as opportunities. Far from threatening workflows as we know them, automated tech is an unprecedented partner in problem-solving, driving processes in fields that have traditionally proven resistant to change.
Privacy hurdles
To promote change, however, organisations must familiarise themselves with the data anonymisation process, ensuring all necessary safeguards are in place. Anonymised data removes all personally identifiable information, allowing datasets to be used for AI training as part of the new National Data Library without compromising individual rights.
Stakeholders need to understand this, as anonymised data could be key to unlocking improved diagnostic algorithms that address existing treatment gaps or improved curriculum development that drives more excellent student outcomes through aggregated data developments.
Transparency is key, with clear communication about how data is stored and collected helping to assuage any ethical concerns currently impacting public confidence. Provided that the right governance frameworks are in place, there is no reason for reluctance in data sharing, which will dampen progress.
Collaborative efforts
To fully harness AI’s potential, the government must assuage doubts, fostering mutually beneficial collaborations between themselves, public institutions, and tech companies ready to provide new AI tools.
Throughout this process, partnerships with technology experts will be crucial, with private sector tools and expertise helping the UK’s public sector to set a new global standard for national use of AI.
To drive real progress, public and private organisations must work together, modernising how we collectively do things as each company protects its competitive edge. Only a unified approach will put the UK at the forefront – and without embracing automation, organisations risk being left behind in this increasingly tech-driven world.
