Category: Government

Small businesses one step closer to gaining better access to Government budgets

This week the Procurement Bill, which to improve SME access to Government spend, passes into the Committee stage in the House of Commons. The UK Government’s Procurement Bill, which will simplify the current four sets of laws into one, has passed the Second Reading in House of Commons and has moved into the Committee stage. […]

Public Sector Executive virtual event: Using data to drive efficiencies

Recently, I spoke on the panel at the PSE event – Digital Transformation: Using data to drive efficiencies. I was joined by Richard Walker, Partner for Data and Insights at Agilisys, Ritchie Somerville, Head of Strategy at the Data-Driven Innovation Initiative at The University of Edinburgh, and Bill South, Head of SRS Data & Governance […]

Agilisys and Infoshare join forces to drive public sector data innovation

We are delighted to announce that we will be partnering with Agilisys, the digital transformation specialist, to transform the way the public sector manages, understands and uses its data to support its citizens. For individual public bodies, integrated care systems, or multi-agency partnerships, consolidated data is at the heart of joined up decision making – with […]

Government keeps momentum with SME agenda despite pandemic setbacks

This week I attended the latest meeting of the Government’s Small Business Panel, and it was extremely encouraging to hear progress is still being made on our objectives despite the disruption of 2020.

Public Sector explores the path to successful innovation and putting citizens first

I attended Digital Leaders’ Public Sector Innovation Conference this week and it was fascinating to hear how the public sector is embracing digital innovation – in particular, AI and machine learning – to continually improve the services they provide for citizens. With a focus on citizen experience and a goal of delivering the right services […]

Government services should share data to stop 9.4m people losing their vote, Electoral Commission warns

The Electoral Commission has publicly advocated the importance of data sharing amongst government departments by calling on ministers to address the 9.4 million people losing their vote due to incorrect contact details. People have a variety of touch points throughout their lives with government services; from applying for national insurance cards; to registering with their […]

Two new announcements spell new era for small businesses in the Government supply chain

Enforcing prompt payment of suppliers Late payments to smaller businesses in the Government supply chain are an ongoing significant issue and can prove a deterrent from SMEs engaging in this process. Therefore, it is encouraging to see the recent announcement of the new prompt payment initiative to ensure all Government suppliers and subcontractors benefit from […]

Government supplier consultation spells good news for SMEs

by Pamela Cook I was delighted to see the news last week that the Minister for Implementation, Oliver Dowden, has not only listened to the blockers and challenges that the SME community face when working with the Government, but has been proactive in exploring the opportunities for both parties. I recently had a meeting with […]

SME champions make headway: government announces it has spent over £1bn working with SMEs

by Pamela Cook   It was in the news this week that the government has spent over £1bn since 2012 working with SMEs to develop and deliver their cloud and digital services. This is nearly half of the total spend: roughly £1.39 in every £3 of the government’s spending in this area has gone to […]

Breaking down barriers to data sharing: the key to unlocking Smart Cities

By Pamela Cook   Earlier this year I spoke on a panel session at a Data Innovation Day in Brussels. The theme for this year’s event was ‘Smart Cities’ and the panel session itself focused on how we can use citizen data to deliver better public services. There were three key takeaways from this panel […]