£45 Billion in Public Sector Annual Savings Lost Through Archaic Technology
It has been a very busy few weeks for public sector technology. Hot off the heels of the AI opportunities Action Plan and the NAO's paper on government’s approach to technology suppliers, this week will see the release of “The State of Digital Government” report. This new report is based on insights from over 500 leaders across 120 organisations data from 100 plus entities and input from 65 stakeholders across public private and 3rd sectors. The major headline of this publication is that public sector missed out on £45 billion of annual savings because of archaic technology.
Findings will show that over one-in-four digital systems used by central government were found to be outdated. In the worst cases, this figure almost tripled (70%). This outdated technology can rack up huge maintenance costs, ultimately resulting in the taxpayer paying out three-to-four times more than if the technology was kept up to date. Furthermore, a growing number of these legacy tech systems are “red-rated” for reliability and security risk.
Cumulatively, the use of old and outdated technology, including public services that cannot be accessed online and require in-person support or physical letters, costs the public sector £45 billion in productivity savings.
Technology Secretary Peter Kyle said:
“Technology that sits at the foundation of our country has been left to wither and decay under the hands of the previous government, too often grinding to a halt and stalling essential public services – racking up a huge bill for the taxpayer.”
“It doesn’t have to be this way – and it won’t be with our Plan for Change. There is a £45 billion jackpot for the public sector if we get technology adoption right, that’s twice the size of the black hole we faced when we took office, and it’s not an opportunity we can let pass us by. The new findings are also expected to show government departments have been pushed towards bringing in contractors and consultants to complete basic technological tasks instead of full-time staff. This trend was driven by weak salaries and headcount restrictions that stopped departments. This is despite them costing 3 times more than civil servants and eating up £14.5 billion in taxpayer money a year.”
Heather Cover-Kus
Heather Cover-Kus
Heather is Head of Central Government Programme at techUK, working to represent the supplier community of tech products and services to Central Government.
Prior to joining techUK in April 2022, Heather worked in the Economic Policy and Small States Section at the Commonwealth Secretariat. She led the organisation’s FinTech programme and worked to create an enabling environment for developing countries to take advantage of the socio-economic benefits of FinTech.
Before moving to the UK, Heather worked at the Office of the Prime Minister of The Bahamas and the Central Bank of The Bahamas.
Heather holds a Graduate Diploma in Law from BPP, a Masters in Public Administration (MPA) from LSE, and a BA in Economics and Sociology from Macalester College.
- Email:
- [email protected]
- LinkedIn:
- https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-cover-kus-ba636538
Charles Bauman
Charles Bauman
Charles Bauman is a Junior Programme Manager in the Central Government Programme at techUK.
He supports the programme’s mission to represent the technology supplier community to the UK government and advocate for digital innovation to address public sector challenges. Charles helps facilitate market engagement, foster partnerships, and ensure that tech suppliers and the government work collaboratively to improve outcomes, deliver value for money, and enhance public services for citizens.
Before joining techUK, Charles gained significant experience in research, analysis, and strategic advisory roles. At H/Advisors Cicero, he specialised in public affairs and corporate communications, while at Verdantix, he supported sustainability research and advisory projects, focusing on regulatory and environmental challenges.
Charles holds an MSc in Theory and History of International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and an MA in Medieval History from King’s College London.
Charles enjoys volunteering with a think tank, reading, hiking, and spending time with his dog and family outside of work.
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- [email protected]
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- www.techuk.org
- LinkedIn:
- https://www.linkedin.com/in/charles-bauman-75712016b/
Ellie Huckle
Ellie Huckle
Ellie joined techUK in March 2018 as a Programme Assistant to the Public Sector team and now works as a Programme Manager for the Central Government Programme.
The programme represents the supplier community of technology products and services in Central Government – in summary working to make Government a more informed buyer, increasing supplier visibility in order to improve their chances of supplying to Government Departments, and fostering better engagement between the public sector and industry. To find out more about what we do, how we do this and how you can get involved – make sure to get in touch!
Prior to joining techUK, Ellie completed Sixth Form in June 2015 and went on to work in Waitrose, moved on swiftly to walking dogs and finally, got an office job working for a small local business in North London, where she lives with her family and their two Bengal cats Kai and Nova.
When she isn’t working Ellie likes to spend time with her family and friends, her cats, and enjoys volunteering for diabetes charities. She has a keen interest in writing, escaping with a good book and expanding her knowledge watching far too many quiz shows!
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- [email protected]
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- 020 7331 2015
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- @techUK,@techUK
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- www.techuk.org,www.techuk.org
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- https://bit.ly/3mtQ7Jx,https://bit.ly/3mtQ7Jx
Austin Earl
Austin Earl
Austin joined techUK’s Central Government team in March 2024 to launch a workstream within Education and EdTech.
With a career spanning technology, policy, media, events and comms, Austin has worked with technology communities, as well as policy leaders and practitioners in Education, Central and Local Government and the NHS.
Cutting his teeth working for Skills Matter, London’s developer community hub, Austin then moved to GovNet Communications where he launched Blockchain Live and the Cyber Security and Data Protection Summit. For the last 3 years he has worked with leaders in Education across the state and independent schools sectors, from primary up to higher education, with a strong research interest in technology and education management.
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- [email protected]
- Phone:
- 07891 743 932
- Website:
- www.techuk.org,www.techuk.org
- LinkedIn:
- https://www.linkedin.com/in/austin-spencer-earl/,https://www.linkedin.com/in/austin-spencer-earl/
Ella Gago-Brookes
Ella Gago-Brookes
Ella joined techUK in November 2023 as a Markets Team Assistant, supporting the Justice and Emergency Services, Central Government and Financial Services Programmes, before progressing into Junior Programme Manager in January 2024.
Before joining the team, she was working at the Magistrates' Courts in legal administration and graduated from the University of Liverpool in 2022. Ella attained an undergraduate degree in History and Politics, and a master's degree in International Relations and Security Studies, with a particular interest in studying asylum rights and gendered violence.
In her spare time she enjoys going to the gym, watching true crime documentaries, travelling, and making her best attempts to become a better cook.
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- [email protected]