{"id":18838,"date":"2017-02-09T14:11:11","date_gmt":"2017-02-09T14:11:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/digileaders.com\/?p=18838"},"modified":"2018-08-08T15:22:05","modified_gmt":"2018-08-08T14:22:05","slug":"wish-modern-democracy-flourish-imperative-respond","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/digileaders.com\/wish-modern-democracy-flourish-imperative-respond\/","title":{"rendered":"If we wish modern democracy to flourish, it is imperative we respond"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today the Government published the long awaited digital strategy, as a Government Transformation Strategy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s some good stuff in here about breaking down silos and making sure Government services are integrated, and a brave introduction from Ben Gummer admitting that Government isn\u2019t responsive:<\/p>\n

\u201cTo govern is to serve. Our purpose is to maintain the security, safety and prosperity of the nation and to deliver what we have promised the people who elect us.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cYet it is too often the case that citizens feel that they live at the convenience of the state: that the government acts not as servant but as master. The result is a perception that the country works for the people who govern, not those whom the government is tasked to serve. Whether it is a lack of belief in the capacity of government to deliver the pledges it makes at election time, or the frustrations thrown in the way of people every day \u2013 from filling in a form to trying to talk to someone on the phone \u2013 government seems less and less capable of doing what people want.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cThe result of that disenchantment is plain to see. Here in the United Kingdom and elsewhere in the democratic world, people are expressing their wish for a more responsive state at the ballot box. It is a call that demands a reply; indeed, if we wish modern democracy to flourish, it is imperative we respond.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cThis is no easy task. Government is more complex and wide-reaching than ever before. There is no company on earth \u2013 even the largest of multinationals \u2013 which comes close to having to co-ordinate the array of essential services and functions for millions of people that a modern government provides. Equally our duty is to serve everyone regardless of ability, age, gender, opinion or the places in which they choose to live. For these reasons and because bureaucracies are by their natures monopoly providers, government has been slow to use the transformative potential of digital technology to change the way it does business.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

While the Strategy presents a vision of a more joined-up Government taking forward transformation, it is disappointing that there appears to be a lack of joined-up leadership when it comes to tackling digital skills and digital inclusion. The Government Digital Service currently has responsibility for Assisted Digital, whilst the Department for Culture, Media and Skills has a relatively new responsibility for digital inclusion. Maybe these two silos could work closer together. The bold vision that has been set out for change \u2018at pace and scale<\/i>\u2018 risks being derailed unless there is action to address the needs of the 12.6 million without digital skills at a similar pace and scale. We know that the DCMS-led Digital Economy Bill is set to put an entitlement in place for free basic digital skills training for the people who need them. That\u2019s great, but it\u2019s not mentioned in this Strategy nor is there a plan for implementing it.<\/p>\n

The rollout of Universal Credit is a good example of where this joined-up policy and leadership around digital inclusion and skills has become urgent. Last year, our Online Centres Network supported 65,000 jobseekers to gain digital skills. This support is provided because citizens need it. Some of the digital skills projects we run are funded by Government, but not by DWP. The Transformation Strategy states that the rollout of Universal Credit depends on \u201cmuch stronger local partnerships to support vulnerable claimants, who are probably using other public services at the same time<\/i>\u201c. This is true, but there must not be an expectation that community organisations can support benefit claimants without a joined up plan to making sure this happens.<\/p>\n

The small section on digital inclusion in the Government Transformation Strategy reads:<\/p>\n

\u201cDevelopments in the private sector may highlight opportunities for government, but some of these do not translate directly into public service provision. For example, private sector companies can choose to target certain customers and exclude others. Public service providers, on the whole, cannot.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cMany sectors have been disrupted by new companies making the best use of digital technology, but it is not a given that similar benefits will be realised by government automatically. It is not possible to disintermediate critical services like benefits and courts, where people depend on public services and have no choice about whether to use them. Services must work for the whole of society \u2013 not just the <\/i>77% of people who have basic digital skills<\/i><\/a>, but for the 12.6 million adults who don\u2019t. This is particularly important as <\/i>financial exclusion and digital exclusion often go hand in hand<\/i><\/a>. People who are the least online are often heavier users of public services, highlighting the need to design services to include them. Nearly one in four people in the UK will be over 65 by 2040.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cA significant proportion of the adult population may never attain the digital skills to use online services without support, because of disabilities or lack of basic literacy skills.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

I\u2019m on record previously, arguing against that last point. At Good Things we\u2019re helping people who are over 90 years of age learn to use the internet independently and many people who have disabilities use the internet confidently. There\u2019s no numbers here of course, so it all really depends what \u2018a signification proportion<\/i>\u2018 means to Government \u2013 if that means 2% or 3% of the adult population then we\u2019re not arguing. If that means 10% then we are.<\/p>\n

In Ben Gummer\u2019s introduction he says:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe imperative is to change, therefore \u2013 and to do so at pace and at scale. This is the meaning of transformation. It is in essence a change of working, of culture and of disposition \u2013 changes that are made possible by digital technology. That technology is not change itself; it enables the change that is so transformative.\u201d<\/p>\n

Changing lives at scale and using technology to enable transformative change on people\u2019s lives is what we\u2019re driven by at Good Things Foundation as many of our 2 million people we\u2019ve supported in the past six years told us last week: \u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s not about computers, it\u2019s about people \u2026 2 million people\u201d<\/a>.<\/p>\n

We hope that there will be a plan of action for how the Government will support the 12.6 million people without digital skills, rather than an acceptance that those who aren\u2019t online now will never be. Its Transformation Strategy \u2013 and modern democracy \u2013 depends on it.<\/p>\n

Join the conversation on twitter with #GTS17<\/a><\/p>\n

This blog was first posted on HelenMilner.com here<\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Today the Government published the long awaited digital strategy, as a Government Transformation Strategy. There\u2019s some good stuff in here about breaking down silos and making sure Government services are integrated, and a brave introduction from Ben Gummer admitting that Government isn\u2019t responsive: \u201cTo govern […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":18840,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-18838","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","topic-digital-skills","topic-charities","topic-government"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nIf we wish modern democracy to flourish, it is imperative we respond | Digital Leaders<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/digileaders.com\/wish-modern-democracy-flourish-imperative-respond\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"If we wish modern democracy to flourish, it is imperative we respond | Digital Leaders\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Today the Government published the long awaited digital strategy, as a Government Transformation Strategy. 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