book extract (work in progress)

My book exploring digital, data and technology—and how politicians and policymakers can understand and use them more effectively—is (slowly!) taking shape. It’s currently around 270

Back to the past with government identity

The Government Digital Service (GDS) has a generous £400m budget to develop “One Login”, a single sign-on and digital identity system for government services. But it comes

What can politicians learn from Universal Credit?

The unfortunate saga of Universal Credit is a powerful reminder of the repeated failure to successfully integrate policy making with technology. A failure that comes

Integrating technology and policymaking

I’ve written before about the need to better integrate technology and policymaking — in 360-degree policy making, policy making in the digital age, and many

360-degree policy making

How can we improve policy making to make it more effective — not just for politicians and policy makers, but citizens, organisations and communities too?

International Standards and Digital Identity

So-called ‘digital transformation’ can often involve little more than moving things from paper onto a screen or automating the way things are already done, aiming

Online Public Services in the UK — 23 years of federated identity

Here’s my paper providing an overview of Federated Identity for Access to UK Public Services: 1997-2020 (PDF): As its catchy title suggests, it provides an

the elusive pursuit of outsourced digital identity

Remember when UK banks were innovative, leading the world and always at the top of the polls for brilliant customer service? No, me neither. Actually,

Digital government and asymmetric justice

Governments are acquiring and sharing more of our data on the basis that it will improve efficiency, personalise services, and reduce fraud, error and debt.

Improving identity assurance and trust

We may live in a digital age, but paper documents – notably passports – are still the most trusted evidence to help prove who we

Data Privacy Day musings

Consider this on #DataPrivacyDay. For more than 60 years now, organisations have been trying to understand and manipulate the way we think, as the first

The political opportunity – and threat – of better public services

Hard to believe I know, but we’re approaching ten years ago – 4th June 2009 to be precise – when Tim O’Reilly set out his