The UK government’s ambitious Blueprint for Modern Digital Government, published in January 2025, promises a reimagining of how government departments collaborate, share data, and deliver services to citizens. A panel of government and technology experts recently unpacked the strategy’s potential at the Think Data for Government event in London (pictured).
At the heart of the vision is a commitment to breaking down long-standing departmental silos, noted Paul Mukherjee, CTO at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). “We all face day-to-day challenges around public services that aren’t joined up. It’s really frustrating when you have to enter your data multiple times,” he said.
Legacy technology emerges as a critical obstacle, with government currently spending a significant percentage of its IT budget simply keeping the lights on. However, innovative approaches are emerging.
Mukherjee revealed that Defra is using artificial intelligence (AI) to automate legacy system migrations, enabling faster transitions at lower costs.
Modernising legacy systems, and establishing robust data foundations
Harneet Singh, data analytics specialist services lead at AWS, highlighted three key focus areas in the blueprint: data sharing, modernising legacy systems, and establishing robust data foundations.
“We’re looking at exposing data for three potential purposes,” he said. “Either for people to use widely, for training AI algorithms, or potentially monetising data products.”
The cultural challenge of data sharing emerged as a crucial theme. Matthew Lyon chief analyst (DD of Data Science, Analysis and Economics), Cabinet Office, noted that while some successful cross-departmental data sharing already exists, such as between HMRC and DWP, “We haven’t gone far enough and fast enough to deliver all the things we want to do.”
Incentivisation and collaboration were identified as critical success factors. The panellists suggested several approaches, including creating shared outcome funds that transcend departmental boundaries and adopting a “single-threaded leadership” model where specific individuals are accountable for data services.
The role of data stewardship was also highlighted. Singh said it was important to bring data stewards into policy discussions from the beginning, noting that “data discovery is a big challenge within government” where departments often don’t know exactly what data they hold.
Interestingly, the panellists warned against allowing AI to dominate the conversation at the expense of fundamental data infrastructure improvements. Lyon cautioned that “AI is almost dominating most of the conversation” and could potentially “crowd out the foundational things we need to do.”
The panel also explored the financial implications of open data. Mukherjee shared an example of a data-sharing platform within Defra that received more than a billion hits last year, highlighting the potential value of open data while acknowledging the challenges of quantifying its economic impact.
A cultural transformation
The panel’s vision for transformation was ultimately about creating a seamless citizen experience. “If we can deliver joined-up public services so that citizens don’t need to care which department is actually providing the services, that would be a real mark of achievement,” said Mukherjee.
Moreover, Singh indicated that the blueprint is a cultural transformation as much as technological strategy, noting “It’s about having the right mindset and ensuring that legislation and policy pave the way for effective data sharing.”
