Robodebt Cultures and Useful Idiots: Why Robodebt was not a techno-failure

Join us in person on Tuesday the 2nd of July, at the Edinburgh Futures Institute, as we hear from Professor Paul Henman on the Australian robodebt scheme and his proposed framework to support critical insight into and shaping of digital technology use in government.

Doors open at 15.45, with Professor Henman’s lecture starting at 16.00.

Australia’s Robodebt scheme is now internationally infamous for how not to use automation in government. Belying heightened concern with artificial intelligence, Robodebt involved traditional, relatively simple computer algorithms to automate the identification and pursuit of alleged historical welfare debts. Yet it was based on a false legal premise. This paper argues that rather than a technical failure, Robodebt was intentional, motivated by political imperatives, aided and abetted by an overly responsive public service culture, and underpinned by a populist culture unsympathetic to welfare recipients. It is argued that these political, public service and populist cultures were grounded in useful idiots, that acted as foils to keep the illegal scheme running for four years. The paper then compares Robodebt with similar digital government failures: Indiana’s automated welfare administration; UK’s Ofqual GCSE COVID algorithm; the Dutch SyRi system; and the British Post Office-Fujitsu Horizon scandal. Drawing from these comparisons, a new framework is presented that delineates six different motivating approaches for the design, development and deployment of digital government, based on different rationalities and enabled by different public service cultures. It is hoped that this framework supports greater critical insight into and shaping of digital technology use in government.

Paul Henman is Professor of Digital Sociology and Social Policy at The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. He is also a Chief Investigator of the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision Making and Society. Paul’s has examined the use of digital technologies in government for almost 30 years. His publications include Governing Electronically (2010, Palgrave), Performing the State (2018, Routledge) and Digital Government in an Age of Disruption (forthcoming, Edward Elgar). His recent research includes the development of a Trauma Informed Algorithmic Assessment Framework to assist organisations develop and deploy socially responsible AI, and mapping automated decision making across all state and local government agencies in New South Wales.

Important notice: If you have any questions regarding accesiblity, please contact us at [email protected]

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Host or Publisher Centre for Technomoral Futures