The government just rolled out a new AI tool called Consult, built on the Humphrey platform, to analyze feedback from a recent Scottish Parliament consultation on non-surgical cosmetic procedures. This could significantly reduce admin time and costs in processing expert and public opinions on policy proposals.
According to the Department of Science, Innovation, and Technology (DSIT), this AI can save officials around 75,000 days of manual work each year, translating to about £20 million in staffing expenses. For the first time, Consult summarized public feedback effectively, matching the results of traditional manual analysis.
In this trial, the AI sifted through over 2,000 responses to identify key themes in six qualitative questions. Scottish government experts reviewed and refined these themes, allowing Consult to categorize individual responses accordingly. This approach freed officials to dive deeper into the details and assess the implications of the feedback.
During this live test, experts manually reviewed every response, and they found minimal differences between human interpretations and those generated by Consult. Technology Secretary Peter Kyle remarked on the trial’s promising results, emphasizing that Humphrey will cut costs and enhance how we gather public and expert insights.
Consult is part of a broader strategy to leverage technology in public services, aimed at achieving up to £45 billion in productivity savings. Officials reported feeling “pleasantly surprised” and found Consult to be a “useful starting point” for analysis. DSIT noted that the tool helps minimize human biases, leading to more consistent feedback evaluation.
Moving forward, the government plans to apply Consult to major consultations without requiring manual reviews of every single response. However, officials will still analyze the themes and responses through an interactive dashboard that enables easy filtering and insight gathering.