PublicTechnology.net

MPs have urged the government to take a “concrete step” to greater transparency by creating a searchable database of meetings with businesses that extends to include senior civil servants.

The Government Digital Service’s notification service has gone live across all central government departments, with local government – and letters – next on the team’s list.

The Government Digital Service has said it will use “more robust metrics” for GOV.UK as its 2017-18 roadmap reveals plans to improve email subscription, content search and user journeys.

The government has achieved “just about everything” that was in its first digital strategy and now needs a different approach to make bigger savings, the director general of the Government Digital Service has said.

Senior managers in the public sector have said that data privacy, security and increasing regulations are all barriers to their organisations benefitting from mobile and digital technologies, according to a survey.

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.

Password managers may offer advantages in the short-term, but password-based authentication has “outstayed its welcome”, the National Cyber Security Centre has said.

The government’s industrial strategy has emphasised the importance of data-sharing by Whitehall, as well as a push to improve digital skills training and boost funding for technologies like robotics and 5G.

MPs have called on the Home Office to step up its contingency planning in case a new emergency communications system for the police, fire and ambulance services is not ready in time for its planned December 2019 switch-on.

Mark O’Neill, one of the founders of the Government Digital Service, has been appointed chief digital officer at the Department for Education.

Regional NHS bodies could soon be asked to collect patient information to create a ‘data-lake’ for use at a national level, according to an NHS England consultation document.

Civica is large enough to take on big transformation government projects but small enough to be seen as “part of the team”, chief executive Wayne Story has said at the launch of its dedicated digital division.

The Scottish government is recruiting for a director to expand its digital public services accelerator scheme CivTech, at a salary of around £68,000.

The Socitm Better Connected survey has revealed that more than half of English county councils are not providing a good online service to help people sign up for e-resources.

Geoff Connell took up his role of CIO at Norfolk County Council in August last year. Rebecca Hill asks him how he found the change from the London Borough of Newham, and finds out what’s on his to-do list.

The Government Digital Service has upgraded the public Application Programming Interface for GOV.UK Notify based on the results of user research carried out during its private beta.

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

Jos Creese, independent digital consultant and principal Analyst for Eduserv, says that technology should promote fundamental change in our care services – and argues that this is the responsibility of everyone from local providers to central government. 

A secure cross-Whitehall WiFi service will be available in government buildings in early 2017 as part of private beta testing, the Government Digital Service has announced.

The Royal Borough of Greenwich is best known for its nautical history, but the council’s digital team is now setting its course for super-fast connectivity and cutting-edge technologies. Gill Hitchcock reports.  

Three-quarters of GOV.UK content is looked at by less than 10 people a month, according to figures from the Government Digital Service.