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[ A decade has passed by: http://www.rogerclarke.com/DV/RDCS.html#T2
[ Yet, even now, all we're hearing is nice words, and the agency
responsible for the Robodebt disaster doing its own audit
of 'lagging legislation' - instead of being subjected to appropriate
controls by parliament and relevant regulatory agencies:
> Services Australia said it would work to identify “lagging
legislation” and “work with stakeholders and strategic partners to
reform it”.
Services Australia releases AI and automation strategy
Centrelink, Medicare agency says it faces trust and legislative issues.
Tom Williams
Info Age
May 27 2025 01:20 PM
https://ia.acs.org.au/article/2025/services-australia-releases-ai-and-automation-strategy.html
Services Australia, the government agency responsible for Centrelink and
Medicare, says it is conscious of the risks of artificial intelligence
and automation and still faces trust and legislative issues as it
outlines a three-year plan for how it will use the technologies to
improve its work.
[
https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/automation-and-artificial-intelligence-ai-use
]
The agency said it was committed to ensuring its use of AI and
automation would be “human-centric, safe, responsible, transparent,
fair, ethical, and legal” as it released its first Automation and
Artificial Intelligence Strategy on Friday.
The strategy was a “crucial” requirement, the agency said, given it now
handled around 9 million digital interactions with customers each week.
Services Australia officials defended the agency’s recent trials of AI
systems during Senate Estimates in March, after Information Age revealed
staffers had tested the technology’s ability to predict fraudulent
welfare claims and which debts to priortise recovering.
The testing followed a pause in the use of automation for social
security and welfare claims in the wake of the Robodebt scandal, which
raised more than half a million inaccurate Centrelink debts between 2016
and 2019.
Services Australia said there was now “a significant opportunity for
automation and AI” to enhance its services, given technologies had
improved and the agency now dealt with more than 1.1 billion online
interactions each year.
It said safeguards guided its use of AI and automation, including
experimenting in controlled offline environments, pausing systems which
did not meet assurance and governance requirements, and “having a human
‘in the loop’ to check AI outputs, where appropriate”.
The agency said it had also now assigned its general manager of
automation and architecture — currently Vanessa Roarty, according to its
website — as the official held accountable for Services Australia’s
implementation of both AI and relevant policy set by the government’s
Digital Transformation Agency (DTA).
Tackling the 'trust deficit’
Services Australia’s chief customer officer, Jonathon Thorpe, said AI
and automation could help “modernise and enhance service delivery for
both our staff and customers”, but the agency admitted it still faced
some barriers in achieving that, including “a trust deficit” with
customers, staff, and other stakeholders.
“Limited trust is driven by the real or perceived risks associated with
using automation and AI including legal and ethical concerns,
misinformation, transparency and explainability, safety and security,
industry concentration, environmental impact and job loss,” the agency said.
“… Critically, failing to deploy oversight tools, such as monitoring for
accuracy and reliability, codes of conduct, independent ethical review
boards, audits and adherence to standards will also impede trust and
confidence.”
Services Australia said it would try to make sure its decisions were
documented, evidence-based, and explainable, with accountable officers
and any options considered also publicly outlined.
When, how, and why data was collected by the agency would also be
detailed transparently, with users provided with “opt-out options and
‘off’ switches by design”, it said.
Services Australia's chief customer officer, Jonathon Thorpe, says AI
and automation can improve the agency's service delivery. Image:
Services Australia / LinkedIn
Navigating ‘lagging legislation’
Services Australia argued another barrier to its goals was “legislation
and policy that doesn’t enable the safe and responsible use of
automation and AI technologies, particularly at the rate it is evolving
and maturing”.
The government has been considering reforms which could provide a
consistent framework for government services to use automated decision
making, following a recommendation by the Robodebt Royal Commission.
Services Australia said it would work to identify “lagging legislation”
and “work with stakeholders and strategic partners to reform it”.
“The complexity and interdependencies within existing laws and
regulations can present a significant barrier to reform,” it said.
The agency said it would also work to improve its workforce’s
capabilities by training all staff in AI fundamentals and supporting
additional training for “those responsible for the procurement,
development, training and deployment of AI systems”.
AI and automation technologies still had the potential to “enhance
efficiency, support more-informed decisions, and elevate the overall
experience for the people we serve”, Thorpe said.
“While we’re optimistic about the potential benefits, we understand the
barriers we may face implementing initiatives that create real value,
and we are conscious of balancing the risks,” he said.
“This is why we are establishing robust and responsive governance,
assurance, and decision-making artefacts that adhere to whole of
government frameworks and policies, best practice and relevant standards.”
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Roger Clarke mailto:[email protected]
T: +61 2 6288 6916 http://www.xamax.com.au http://www.rogerclarke.com
Xamax Consultancy Pty Ltd 78 Sidaway St, Chapman ACT 2611 AUSTRALIA
Visiting Professorial Fellow UNSW Law & Justice
Visiting Professor in Computer Science Australian National University
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