The UKtech50: The top 20

Tom Steinberg is the man who has shown the public, private and voluntary sectors how powerful technology can be when used in a practical and efficient way to improve people's lives. He is the founder and director of not-for-profit organisation MySociety, which runs democracy websites in the UK, including Parliamentary transparency websites TheyWorkForYou and WriteToThem. With the government releasing more open data, and a Conservative leadership promoting the ideals of the Big Society, Steinberg will be the figurehead and role model for many such initiatives in 2012.

Steinberg is also a member of the UK government’s Public Sector Transparency Board.