Opinion: What Covid revealed about government’s legacy IT, and what to do next
26 Jan Digital, Data & Technology

Opinion: What Covid revealed about government’s legacy IT, and what to do next

The coronavirus pandemic pressed unprecedented stress on government’s technology systems. Many parts of the system coped well, but it also revealed problems that must be addressed to avoid future crisis, says Reform's director of research, Eleonora Harwich
by Eleonora Harwich
Making contact: the inside story of how the government’s Covid app was developed
29 Mar Digital, Data & Technology
Making contact: the inside story of how the government’s Covid app was developed
MPs find government has ‘presented pandemic data to provoke anxiety, rather than understand risk’
19 Mar Digital, Data & Technology
MPs find government has ‘presented pandemic data to provoke anxiety, rather than understand risk’
Border tech failures ramp up Home Office’s ‘miserable’ digital record, MPs warn
12 Mar Digital, Data & Technology
Border tech failures ramp up Home Office’s ‘miserable’ digital record, MPs warn
Data insight is the holy grail of better government decision-making Sponsored
29 Mar Digital, Data & Technology
Data insight is the holy grail of better government decision-making
Government is the mother of all data repositories, but Rohan Malik, Managing Partner for Government and Infrastructure at EY, argues that it needs to use this data well to realise its full potential
Interview: deputy national statistician on legacy tech, lockdowns and a ‘leap forward’ for government’s use of data
11 Mar Digital, Data & Technology
Interview: deputy national statistician on legacy tech, lockdowns and a ‘leap forward’ for government’s use of data
Alison Pritchard on plans for the 2021 census, ensuring public trust in statistics – and her next epic boat journey
DfE laptops for home-schooling found to contain malware
26 Jan Digital, Data & Technology
DfE laptops for home-schooling found to contain malware
‘Small number’ of machines affected by what users say is a worm that contacts Russian servers
Was 2020 a watershed for public sector use of algorithms?
25 Jan Digital, Data & Technology
Was 2020 a watershed for public sector use of algorithms?
Last year saw public protests about the use of predictive analytics in decision making. As the technology becomes more widely used in many public services, Sam Trendall asks experts about the implications for government, the law – and the citizens affected
Government shakes up digital leadership
14 Jan Digital, Data & Technology
Government shakes up digital leadership
Home Office tech chief Davinson appointed leader of newly created Central Digital and Data Office while Read arrives from MoJ to head up GDS
HMRC records 12% spike in complaints as customer-service issues continue
11 Jan Digital, Data & Technology
HMRC records 12% spike in complaints as customer-service issues continue
November stats show another increase in call-waiting times and new struggles with answering online and postal queries
Government ‘working towards’ publishing new digital strategy this year
07 Jan Digital, Data & Technology
Government ‘working towards’ publishing new digital strategy this year
Plan was due to be published in autumn last year
DfE expands supplier base for laptops scheme
01 Dec 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
DfE expands supplier base for laptops scheme
Department brings in two additional IT resellers to supply about 165,000 extra devices
HMRC and Home Office the big winners as spending review commits £600m to ‘fix outdated government IT’
30 Nov 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
HMRC and Home Office the big winners as spending review commits £600m to ‘fix outdated government IT’
Document also outlines projection of extra £700m revenue from digital taxation regime
NHS ‘improves accuracy’ of contact-tracing app as downloads near 20 million
03 Nov 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
NHS ‘improves accuracy’ of contact-tracing app as downloads near 20 million
Update will end ‘ghost notifications’, government claims
Cabinet Office publishes employee and supplier personal info in data breach
29 Oct 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
Cabinet Office publishes employee and supplier personal info in data breach
Improperly redacted contract included names and mobile phone numbers – which remained publicly available four days after department had been notified of breach
HM Land Registry offers £120k for digital chief to lead transformation
26 Oct 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
HM Land Registry offers £120k for digital chief to lead transformation
Tech leader will oversee digitisation of platforms and infrastructure upgrades
Joint Biosecurity Centre partners with stats and machine-learning experts to inform Covid response
22 Oct 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
Joint Biosecurity Centre partners with stats and machine-learning experts to inform Covid response
The Alan Turing Institute and Royal Statistical Society to set up virtual lab
‘The opportunity to have organisations of all types publishing data to common standards is really exciting’: why stats regulators' new award matters
21 Oct 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
‘The opportunity to have organisations of all types publishing data to common standards is really exciting’: why stats regulators' new award matters
The first ever award to recognise the voluntary application of the Office for Statistics Regulation code has been awarded jointly to MHCLG and the Scottish Fiscal Commission, with UCAS named highly commended.
DWP to trial digital system for issuing National Insurance numbers
13 Oct 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
DWP to trial digital system for issuing National Insurance numbers
Service will be made available to small number of applicants
Amazon hosting deal with GDS doubles to £6.6m as minister fends off questions over UK chief’s advisory role
06 Oct 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
Amazon hosting deal with GDS doubles to £6.6m as minister fends off questions over UK chief’s advisory role
New contract came into effect on 1 July, as minister claims "robust measures" in place to mitigate against possible conflicts of interest
GDS opens recruitment for chief executive
02 Oct 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
GDS opens recruitment for chief executive
Digital agency offers salary of £168k in search for first permanent head in more than a year
DWP to ‘create new digital function’ as BPDTS is brought back in-house
01 Oct 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
DWP to ‘create new digital function’ as BPDTS is brought back in-house
Union says move completes 'full circle' of change for outsourced benefits and pensions technology services
What sensitive data did the Home Office lose in Belgrade?
30 Sep 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
What sensitive data did the Home Office lose in Belgrade?
Department’s annual report shows, for the first time in many years, documents or data lost from a secure government building had to be reported to the ICO. CSW's sister title PublicTechnology finds out more.
DCMS names telecoms diversification task force after Huawei ban
28 Sep 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
DCMS names telecoms diversification task force after Huawei ban
A selection of telecoms executives and academics will help deliver a strategy to be published later this year
GOV.UK to trial personalised accounts
24 Sep 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
GOV.UK to trial personalised accounts
Citizens will be offered the chance to create an online login to government portal
NHS contact tracing app to launch this month amid increasing test concerns
15 Sep 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
NHS contact tracing app to launch this month amid increasing test concerns
App launch announced as NHS Providers accuses government of not “being as open” with testing capacity problems
National Data Strategy promises to ‘tackle government culture of risk aversion’
14 Sep 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
National Data Strategy promises to ‘tackle government culture of risk aversion’
Document sets out ‘transforming government’s use of data’ as one of five missions
Government Commercial Function seeks to improve Whitehall procurement info with £1.5m data lake
26 Aug 2020 Digital, Data & Technology
Government Commercial Function seeks to improve Whitehall procurement info with £1.5m data lake
Information resource seeks to bring in more data from a greater range of departmental sources