The power of AI is worrying senior Labour figures – as is the fear of ‘falling behind the public’
Senior figures in the UK Labour government are expressing growing unease about AI's risks, including its potential use by extremist groups, while also worrying that the party may be moving too slowly relative to public concern about the technology.
Why this matters: When cabinet ministers start talking about AI with an 'ominous stare,' that is worth paying attention to. The tension here is real: governments that move too fast on AI risk embedding harmful tools into public life without oversight; governments that move too slow hand the space to bad actors. Labour seems caught between those two fears. The people who will feel that gap are ordinary citizens, not the ministers debating it in conference halls.
Who should care: General readers · AI governance · Policy
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