Spot the difference: National Data Strategy/National Data Library
The Labour government appears to be taking every opportunity to emphasise that it has a plan for growth. This is set against the backdrop of the inauguration of Donald Trump as US president and the inevitable global market turmoil that will ensue.
The latest thinking from the UK government is around a 50 point AI Opportunities action plan. To be fair, none of these things are particularly forward-thinking or original. It stands as yet another government attempt at putting forward a vision for growth based on turning the UK into a tech savvy economy.
In 2019, the Tory government unveiled a National Data Strategy (NDS), which promised to drive the collective vision that would support the UK to build a world-leading data economy. The aim was to ensure that people, businesses and organisations trust the data ecosystem, are sufficiently skilled to operate effectively within it, and have access to data when they need it
Wind the clock forward to January 13, 2025 and among the 50-point AI Opportunities action plan is a National Data Library, which aims to unlock both public and private data sets to enable innovation. As far as their policies on national data, it would seem, there isn’t much difference between what the Tories wanted in 2019 and Labour’s data ambitions.
The 2022 to 2025 data roadmap
In September 2024, Craig Suckling, the chief data officer for the UK government CDDO (Central Digital and Data Office) wrote a blog, stating: “We need to unlock access and break down silos while maintaining public trust in secure and ethical data sharing across the public sector and nationally. To do so we will deploy and scale a library and exchange service, it will transform the way we manage our public sector data.”
What is interesting about his post is that a year earlier, in 2023, the CDDO updated its 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data. Among the areas covered include creating user-centric policies and public services that are more efficient, fit for the digital age, centred on user needs and deliver the right outcomes. At the time, the CDDO also wanted to equip civil servants for a digital future. “We will upskill civil servants in digital capabilities and digital delivery, with access to the right data and tools to do their jobs effectively,” the strategy paper states.
It also proposed to enhance government efficiency and security by creating a more joined-up and efficient government that uses common building blocks to deliver services quickly, cheaply and securely.
Given that joined up data and bolstering public sector data skills has been on the political agenda for many years, we need to question whether the March 2025 deadline Labour has set for many of the actions in its AI Opportunities action plan is achievable.