PublicTechnology.net

New bill offers full tax relief, saving businesses an estimated £60m

Renaming the ministry the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport acknowledges how its responsibilities have changed, says minister

Digital Economy Council, which meets for first time today, also features Cisco, Facebook, and BT

DCMS minister also claims planned Digital Charter will be world’s first such framework

Ensuring spaces can be booked by the public and other bodies can bring in revenue and create efficiencies, argues Chris Smith of Kajima

The public sector needs to use technology to reform its workforce by disrupting hierarchies, adopting new recruitment processes and automating administrative roles, a think tank has said.

As the New Year approaches, PublicTechnology takes a look at what we might expect in the world of digital government in 2017. 

As the UK’s first director general for digital heads for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, and the Government Digital Service struggles to maintain its footing at the centre, David Walker asks what the reality is for government digital.

The government needs to offer much more clarity on how it plans to up departmental data sharing in its Digital Economy Bill, MPs have been told.

North Yorkshire County Council has agreed to procure a delivery partner to increase its superfast broadband coverage to 96% of homes by 2019.

The communications regulator Ofcome has said that BT’s Openreach should become a distinct company with its own board as part of reforms aimed at improving work to expand broadband coverage in the UK.

Chi Onwurah, shadow minister for the digital economy, has called on the government to establish a joined-up data ethics framework - and not to lose focus because of Brexit. 

BT Openreach’s lack of transparency over the cost and deployment plans for the Broadband Delivery UK programme is stifling local competition, the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee has said.

Matt Hancock faces calls to clarify the implications of Brexit on the digital economy in his new role as minister for culture, communications and creative industries.

Public authorities will be granted more powers to share their data with other bodies through proposals set out in the Digital Economy Bill, which was laid before Parliament yesterday.

The government is being urged to involve local authorities in the development of the UK National Cyber Security Centre to ensure councils are not left behind in the push for increased cyber security.

The Information Commissioner’s Office should have greater powers to audit local government and health organisations, MPs have said.

Telecommunications giant BT has been picked as the sole supplier for a pan-London ICT procurement framework that will be open to most of the public sector and worth up to £200m.

The government is not providing the digital skills or the infrastructure needed to make their own Universal Credit programme work, says Chi Onwurah.

Canadian information-rights watchdog Elizabeth Denham has been selected as the UK government’s first choice to succeed Information Commissioner Christopher Graham this year.

Three London councils are set for an ICT partnership predicted to save £6m a year, but success will require transparency, continual assessment and an exit plan for each authority. Gill Hitchcock reports.