Former Cabinet minister Darren Jones has backed Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s push for international agreement on artificial intelligence, arguing that the UK should use its leadership of the G7 and G20 in 2027 to shape global rules around both AI safety and its impact on jobs and the economy.
Jones said:
The government is right to use its influence to bring nations together to seek agreement on oversight of AI.
He added:
I hope Andy Burnham will use the UK Presidency of the G7 and G20 in 2027 to do just this, with a focus not just on safety but on jobs and the economy.
His intervention followed Burnham’s speech at the UN General Assembly, where the Prime Minister announced that AI would be placed at the heart of Britain’s G20 presidency next year.
Burnham wants common global principles
Speaking in New York, Burnham said governments needed to move quickly to establish common international principles for frontier AI.
He said the UK would use its G20 presidency to bring together governments and industry around questions including AI’s economic opportunities, risks, transparency and preparedness.
The Prime Minister said Britain would work towards:
a single set of global principles and standards
designed to ensure AI development remains safe while allowing countries to benefit from the technology.
Jobs and economic disruption part of the debate
Jones’ intervention broadens that discussion beyond existential or national-security risks.
His argument is that governments also need to confront what AI will mean for employment, productivity, wages and economic growth.
That is already becoming a major theme of international discussions. Earlier this month, G20 ministers agreed measures covering AI skills, emerging technologies, industrial innovation and what they called the AI Prosperity Compact.
The UK Government has similarly been trying to connect its AI strategy with investment, advanced manufacturing and regional job creation.
Growing parliamentary scrutiny
The debate over oversight is also intensifying at Westminster.
Meta, Google, OpenAI and Anthropic have been invited to give evidence to the Commons Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Committee at an urgent hearing on 13 October, amid concerns that the UK’s current framework may not be sufficient for rapidly advancing AI systems.
Burnham has separately acknowledged that AI presents national-security risks while arguing that the technology could also deliver major benefits for public services and the economy.
UK to host G20 summit in Manchester
Britain will host the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Manchester on 27 and 28 November 2027, giving the Government a major platform to shape the international economic agenda.
Downing Street has also confirmed that Burnham discussed AI safety and the UK’s forthcoming G20 presidency with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during talks at the UN this week.
Jones calls for wider economic focus
For Jones, the challenge is to ensure that AI governance does not become a debate solely about technical safety.
He is arguing that international coordination should also address how AI changes labour markets, where new jobs are created, how workers are supported through disruption and whether the economic gains are broadly shared.
His message is that Britain has an opportunity in 2027 to shape the global AI debate — not only by establishing safeguards, but by making jobs, productivity and economic opportunity central to the rules governing the technology.
