Peter Kyle, the UK's innovation and technology secretary, has suggested that phone center waiting times could be cut in half by using AI technology.

He told Sky News: "I am determined to drive this technology through the government."

In recent times, Brits have bemoaned the long waiting times they often face while trying to access services such as Citizens Advice, HMRC and the DVLA.

But a new AI helper, known as Caddy, could now transform the services, saving taxpayer money and improving the overall experience in the process.

The government minister explained: "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.

"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."

Kyle believes the technology could be particularly beneficial for HMRC, the UK's tax, payments and customs authority, which receives around "100,000 conversations every single day".

He added: "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 center 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."