UK Edition
Robot civil servants could help save taxpayer's cash by replacing 250,000 jobs
Robots should be brought in to replace thousands of civil servants and save the taxpayer billions of pounds, according to a new report.
Reform, a public-services think tank, suggests that 90 per cent of Whitehall’s 137,000 administrative staff could be replaced with "artificially intelligent chatbots" by 2030, saving £2.6 billion a year.
The 'Work in progress' report also calls for smart machines and autonomous robots to do the job of 250,000 public-sector workers.
It says 90,000 NHS administrators and 24,000 GP receptionists could be let go under the "radical" change to public services.
The report quotes evidence that estimates 30 per cent of nurses’ activities could be automated, and a similar proportion for doctors in some specialities.
It comes after the NHS announced that patients will be assessed by robots under a controversial 111 scheme to use “artificial intelligence” to ease pressures on Accident & Emergency units.
More than one million people will be given access to a free app which means they can consult with a “chatbot” instead of a human being.
The think tank says the public sector can become the 'next Uber' if it uses technology to deliver the taxpayer better value for money.
It follows warnings from Carl Frey, co-director of the Oxford Martin programme on technology and employment at Oxford University, that the jobs of the middle classes could also soon be taken over by robots.
He said his findings have suggested that insurance underwriters are most at risk, followed by loan officers, motor insurance assessors and credit analysts.
Alexander Hitchcock, the co-author of the Reform report, said: “Such a rapid advance in the use of technology may seem controversial, and any job losses must be handled sensitively.
"But the result would be public services that are better, safer, smarter and more affordable.”