Govt use of artificial intelligence: PAC to scrutinise implementation
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) holds an evidence session on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in government on Thursday 30 January at 10am, informed by the National Audit Office’s own 2024 report on the topic.
Meeting details
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) published its AI Opportunities Action Plan in January 2025. The Government’s response to the plan saw commitments to a flexible approach AI adoption across the UK’s public services. The NAO found last year that AI was not widely used across Government, concluding that achieving large-scale benefits from its use will likely require significant improvements to data, and changes in public services’ processes and workforces.
The PAC’s session will explore Government’s strategy and governance in the use of AI, how far it is currently being used across Government, and challenges to its implementation. MPs will likely use the session to examine how DSIT is planning to use current pilot AI programmes to support wider adoption of its use across Government. Around a third of 89 Government bodies surveyed by the NAO had deployed AI by autumn 2023, with a further third piloting or planning its use. Of the bodies that reported deployed AI, each typically had one or two use cases.
The Committee will also likely challenge officials on how AI will be implemented safely and responsibly, including how DSIT is tackling issues with legacy IT infrastructure, data access and quality, and AI guidance, standards and assurance. Fewer than half the bodies with deployed AI (15 of 32) surveyed by the NAO said that its use cases were always or usually identified at organisational level before deployment. Eight of 32 organisations said they were always or usually compliant with standards on transparency with regard to the use of algorithmic tools with a significant influence in decision-making.