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
The curious ‘failings’ of Facebook – and the true cost of ‘free’
Facebook manages to achieve the near impossible. It often appears technically and politically incompetent, yet remains highly profitable. Its ability to track, monitor and profile
public policy, technology and society – democracy in an age of change
The intersection of public policy, technology and society is complex. And yes, that’s something of an understatement. A mix of politics, law, design, architecture, usability,
payday loans and the missed opportunity?
In our book Digitizing Government: understanding and implementing new digital business models, there’s a table illustrating how often grand announcements have been made around the
The wellsprings of UK digital reform part 2 – separating porcine lip enhancement from transformation
Previously This is the second episode of a mini-series of blogs looking at the origins of the UK government’s digital reform programme since 2010. Part
The wellsprings of UK digital reform part 1 – the backstory
While there are some great pockets of work taking place to deliver better public services, the UK government’s overall attempts at technology-enabled, or “e-government” or
Manifesto for Better Public Services
Last night at the Institute for Government, I helped launch the “Manifesto for Better Public Services”, along with an accompanying and much more detailed “Better
A timely disruption – open banking
2018 is the year “open banking” becomes a reality. Bank customers, including small and medium-sized businesses, can share their current account information securely with other third
“Artificial Intelligence” and the House of Lords inquiry
Below is a copy of my submission to the House of Lords Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence. Intentionally absent are more sensitive aspects of AI
the inadequate scope of public sector “reform”
In the 1999 book “Reinventing Government”, information is placed at the centre of the government reform model: The rings identify multiple aspects that need to be addressed
improving data science ethics
Just over a year ago the UK’s data science ethical framework was put out for consultation. The purpose of the framework was to give civil
