The forthcoming audit will include addressing ageing IT systems and boosting investment in cutting edge cybersecurity.
Patrick Vallance, the UK’s chief scientific advisor during the Covid-19 pandemic and now the country’s minister for science, research and innovation, has laid out Downing Street’s commitment to technology upgrades.
‘As set out in the AI Opportunities Action Plan and the blueprint for modern digital government, both of which were published in January, the UK government has a vision for supporting the UK’s leading position in the global AI sector through the safe, effective, efficient and ethical adoption of AI in the UK’s public sector,’ Vallance told Lord Taylor of Warwick when asked about plans for the public sector.
‘The UK government is in the process of a Spending Review which will be used to tackle the state of historic legacy IT, invest in cybersecurity, cloud-based computing, and the technologies that harness the benefits of AI for the public sector,’ Vallance continued. ‘The government has a clear focus on taking advantage of new technologies such as AI to improve public sector productivity and deliver a better user experience for citizens.’
In her Autumn Budget, revealed in October 2024, Chancellor Rachel Reeves has presented the outcome of phase 1 of the Spending Review. This included fixing departmental budgets for the current and next fiscal year. The second stage of this process, which will be published this spring, is designed to identify the priorities within this. All departments will be obliged to ‘make better use of technology’ in a bid to overhaul the public sector.
Image: Christopher Bill / Unsplash
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