The New Statesman is delighted to invite you to participate in the ‘AI, automation and digital sovereignty: How can we balance efficiency with control?’ roundtable discussion on Tuesday 10th November 2026, in association with Appian.
Event details:
➤ Date: Tuesday 10 November 2026
➤ Time: 09:00-10:30
➤ Location: Central London
Overview:
The government has made improving productivity a central priority, identifying almost £14bn of efficiency gains in the delivery of public services, as well as cuts to central administration budgets. As part of this agenda, the government is rolling out significant investment in digital and AI transformation as a means of driving efficiency gains. However, these efficiencies can come at the cost of digital sovereignty. It is therefore vital that we examine what practical solutions to this dilemma could look like and how central government and associated bodies can strike the right balance on an operational basis.
The opportunity presented by AI and process automation is substantial. The 2025 UK Public Sector Efficiency Survey found that 94% of public sector workers experience process inefficiencies, with manual and repetitive tasks, fragmented legacy systems and a lack of training among the leading barriers. Meanwhile, 72% believe automating repetitive tasks would simplify their roles and improve efficiency, while 95% of those already using workflow or process automation report benefits.
However, achieving productivity gains is not simply a question of automating existing processes or adopting the most powerful AI tools available. Government and related bodies must also consider where data is held, who controls the infrastructure on which AI operates and how sensitive public-sector information is protected. The growing concentration of cloud and AI infrastructure among a small number of global providers represents a strategic tension between accessing cutting-edge technology and maintaining digital sovereignty.
The next phase of automation and transformation in government and our public services must therefore find a balance between using AI and automation to remove unnecessary bureaucracy, improve services and free up public servants’ time, while retaining appropriate control over data, infrastructure and critical systems. The challenge is therefore not simply how quickly government can adopt AI, but how it can build the right processes, infrastructure and governance around it. With central government mandated to drive growth and productivity gains, we will examine how AI can be deployed at scale without creating new dependencies, vulnerabilities or inefficiencies.
Key questions for discussion include:
- How can central government and related bodies capture the productivity gains from AI and automation while maintaining control over sensitive public-sector data?
- What does digital sovereignty mean in practice for government procurement, cloud infrastructure and AI deployment?
- How should we balance the benefits of scale and access to cutting-edge AI with resilience, security and strategic independence?
- How can departments overcome fragmented legacy systems and create the integrated data infrastructure needed to make AI genuinely effective?
- What governance, skills and safeguards are needed to ensure that automation improves public services without compromising trust and accountability?
