Phone waiting times for public services could be cut in half after successful AI trial, minister suggests
Phone centre waiting times for public services could be cut in half by using AI, a minister has suggested.
Speaking to Sky News, Science, Innovation and Technology Secretary Peter Kyle said the technology was “win-win” as it will save the taxpayer money and make the public experience better.
“I am determined to drive this technology through the government,” he added.
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Long waiting times has long blighted those trying to access services like Citizens Advice, HMRC and the DVLA.
But with the government talking of an AI revolution, one trial has used the tech to drastically reduce the volume of minutes spent on hold.
The Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) teams in Stockport, Oldham, Rochdale and Trafford have managed to cut the average phone call length from eight minutes to four in a months’ long trial.
The AI helper, Caddy, was developed in house by the team in Manchester. Its success led to interest from the government, and there are now hopes it can be expanded into public services.
CAB is run as a series of charities. There are hopes Caddy will be rolled-out nationwide across the service later this year.
The Caddy software was first developed at the Citizens Advice Bureau. Pic: iStock
Rather than a robotic voice answering and directing callers, the software helps workers answer queries faster – and with greater confidence.
Stuart Pearson, the head of innovation at the CAB team in Stockport, Oldham, Rochdale and Trafford, told Sky News: “Caddy frees our advisers to focus on what truly matters – listening, understanding, and providing personalised support to people during challenging times. This technology helps our staff and volunteers work more efficiently, but that person-to-person contact remains central to our service.
“For us, Caddy represents our commitment to embracing innovation while preserving the personal touch that has defined Citizens Advice for over 80 years. We want to use AI responsibly to help our people do even more good in communities across the country.”
The new system replaces the old ways of working, which including having to consult with colleagues and manually searching documentation – all of which required putting users on hold.
Instead, phone handlers can ask AI a question and quickly receive an answer based only on approved sources. The response is still checked by a senior member of staff.
“People won’t know when they’re calling that the person who is answering the call and assisting them is using the power of AI to get the right information to them much, much quicker – that means it’s a better experience,” Mr Kyle said.
“They get the information quicker, they can start to tackle the issues they’re calling about, you know, much more rapidly than before.
“And it also means that those volunteers working in Citizen’s Advice can actually speak to more people and help more people.”
The AI chatbot Caddy. The owl was the original symbol of Citizens Advice. Pic: DSIT
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When Labour came to power last year, they inherited creaking public services, with public confidence in the sector plummeting.
One poll from Ipsos released a month before the general election found that three quarters of Britons believed public services had worsened since 2019.
And a report on the sector released by the Institute for Government at the end of 2023 said: “Public services that have for years been creaking are now crumbling.”
Concerns were rife about issues like long phone waiting times. His Majesty’s Revenue And Customs (HMRC) was accused by MPs of deliberately cutting off tens of thousands of calls in a bid to get them using online services.
The department said the claims were “completely baseless”.
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The technology secretary was keen to emphasise the point of the AI assistant was to make interactions “more human” – and callers wouldn’t know it was being used.
Mr Kyle said: “HMRC, for example, has 100,000 conversations every single day.
“Imagine if we, on that scale, could halve the amount of time that people need to spend having that conversation, they have more time to do the things that they need to be doing, or actioning the things they are calling the help centre for in the first place.
“But also it means that the people who are delivering that service can speak to more people and therefore the service gets better.”
Away from trying to provide a better service, AI could pave a way for the government to save money.
Mr Kyle said that “headcount, costs, people, go into the decisions that departments make”.
But he also wants to drive a better quality of service through a digital transformation.
“That is an absolute priority, and there will be other productivity gains along the way.” he said. “And we’re determined to deliver on both.”
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Unions, however, want to make sure the government works alongside workers in a bid to prevent job losses.
Mike Clancy, the general secretary of Prospect, previously said there are “potentially large positives” for the use of AI in the civil service.
“But to make any technology work properly and to minimise the risks involved it needs to be introduced in consultation with their workforce, not imposed on them,” he added.
Liverpool have won the Premier League title after a 5-1 victory over Tottenham at Anfield.
Arne Slot’s men did it in impressive style, turning over Spurs in a convincing win.
It was a rocky start for the Reds after Dominic Solanke put the north London side ahead.
However, fortunes quickly changed in the first half as Liverpool scored three times without a response.
Captain Virgil van Dijk (centre) celebrates. Pic: Reuters
Salah on his knees in celebration after the final whistle. Pic: AP
Liverpool’s Harvey Elliott (below) and Jarell Quansah celebrate after full-time. Pic: PA
Slot cheers after the full-time whistle. Pic: AP
In the second half, it took until the 63rd minute for Mohamed Salah to make it 4-1 before a fifth followed.
The Reds have won the title in manager Arne Slot’s first season in charge, and move level with fierce rivals Manchester United on 20 league championships.
But it makes them arguably the most successful English club ever as they have won more European Cup or Champions League titles.
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk told Sky Sports after the final whistle: “It’s special and it’s something that we don’t take for granted. It’s amazing.
“A lot of emotions before the game, during the whole week, but we got the job done and we (are) truly deserved champions of England. (Liverpool is) the most beautiful club in the world and I think we deserve all of this. Let’s enjoy the next couple of weeks and let it sink in.”
Liverpool’s Kostas Tsimikas poses with a Premier League trophy cut out. Pic: Reuters
Manager Arne Slot and his team after the final whistle. Pic: AP
Slot took over last summer from Jurgen Klopp, who guided them to their previous and maiden Premier League title triumph in 2020, when the COVID-19 lockdown saw matches played behind closed doors.
He is the first Dutch manager to win the Premier League and the fifth man to do so in a debut campaign after Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, Manuel Pellegrini, and Antonio Conte.
Speaking to Sky Sports he said: “They [the players] did an outstanding job today. The main job was to win. Everyone said we had got it already. But we had to make sure and we got over the line.”
Several players, including Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk, and Mohamed Salah, played leading roles in both the 2025 and 2020 campaigns.
Van Dijk and Salah recently signed new contracts extending their careers at the club.
Mohamed Salah takes a selfie with fans after scouring the fourth Liverpool goal. Pic: AP
Fans at Anfield during the game. Pic: AP
Fans in the stands at Anfield before full-time. Pic: Reuters
Liverpool will have to wait until the final game of the season – at home to Crystal Palace on 25 May – to be presented with the Premier League trophy.
It will be the first time the club’s fans will have seen their side lift the top-flight title in person since 1990.
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Two pro-Palestinian demonstrators have thrown red powder on Tower Bridge – just moments before leading runners in the London Marathon went past.
The protesters were arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance and remain in custody, said the Metropolitan Police.
A video shared by Youth Demand, which is calling for a trade embargo on Israel, shows two people jumping over a barrier that separates spectators from the race course.
The pair, wearing t-shirts that say “Youth Demand: Stop Arming Israel”, are then seen standing in the middle of the road on the bridge.
Pic: LNP
They throw red powder in the air as an official marathon car goes past displaying the race time.
A motorbike with a cameraman on board continues along the route, while a second motorbike stops and one of the riders gets off and pushes the pair out of the way, just before the men’s elite runners pass.
Several police officers then jump over the barrier and detain the pair, the footage shows.
There appeared to be no impact on the marathon.
More than 56,000 participants were expected to take part in the 26.2-mile race through the capital.
Sabastian Sawe of Kenya won the men’s elite race in a time of two hours, two minutes and 27 seconds, while Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa shattered the women’s-only world record in two hours, 15 minutes and 50 seconds.
Assefa beat the previous best of two hours, 16 minutes and 16 seconds set last year in London by Kenyan Peres Jepchirchir.
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Pic: LNP
The Metropolitan Police said in a statement: “At around 10.38am, two protesters from Youth Demand jumped over barriers at Tower Bridge and threw red paint on to the road.
“Marathon event staff intervened to remove the protesters from the path of the men’s elite race which was able to pass unobstructed.”
The force added that they were “quickly supported by police officers who arrested the protesters on suspicion of causing a public nuisance”.
The Met said the paint “appeared to be chalk-based” and was not expected to “present a hazard to runners yet to pass this point”.
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