techUK news and views
23 May 2024

A General Election is called – what does UK tech need to know?

The Prime Minister announced on 22 May that the General Election will take place on Thursday 04 July.

The calling of an election has important implications for the Government’s legislative agenda and has promoted a flurry of questions as to what will happen in the next few days and weeks. 

To help our members navigate this we are providing a short guide to the final days of the current Parliament, what techUK has done to prepare for the campaign, what we will be up to over the next few weeks. 

What does the pre-election period mean?

With an election called a pre-election period has now officially begun. This is a period of sensitivity across government departments and public services. This is because Government and local authority resources cannot be used for party political campaigning. This is often referred to as the ‘pre-election period’, a period of ‘heightened sensitivity’. 

More details can be found here in this House of Commons briefing but official Departments and civil servants  are expected to exercise caution in making announcements or decisions that might have an effect on the election campaign.  

What will happen to legislation currently in Parliament?

It has been confirmed that Parliament will officially be dissolved for the election on 30 May. With this in mind, there will be two more sitting days of Parliament to complete any outstanding legislation or regulations. This period is known as the ‘wash-up’ period, and priority is given to pieces of legislation of significant importance or those nearing the end of their Parliamentary course.

Wash-up will take place on 23 and 24 May. As of now, we expect that the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill anf Media Bill will make it into washup. However, there has been no decision yet on the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill (No.2).

For Bills that have fallen, the next Government will need to reintroduce this or similar legislation after the election in the new Parliament to continue these updates to the law.

What happens to other ongoing policy work across departments, including consultations?

The UK now enters into a pre-election period, so it is expected the Civil Service will wind down its public facing operations. However, civil servants will continue to work behind closed doors and private meetings between Government Departments and their stakeholders will likely still go ahead.

Open consultations and calls for evidence will still continue to take submissions. However no decisions on the outcome Government of consultations will be taken until new Ministers are in post.

Regulators, which are independent of Government, can continue their consultations as normal, however any codes or practice or regulation that needs to be laid before Parliament will be delayed until Parliament resumes after the election.  

When will manifestos be published? 

Typically, in previous elections we’ve seen the manifestos published a few weeks prior to the election date. Whilst this pattern would indicate manifestos could be published around the middle of June, there are a few other factors to consider that could impact the expected timelines.

Firstly, we’ve had a significant lead in time for this election, and planning around manifestos has been underway for a long while already. For example, it was widely speculated that the Labour Party finished their first draft of their manifesto in early 2024 – with plans to update it as the year progressed. This could mean we see manifestos earlier than in previous elections.

Secondly, it has been widely reported that the commitments from this election will be lighter than in previous times. With such a focus expected during the campaign to be on delivering on pledges, it’s therefore possible this could mean a quicker turnaround time for the publication of manifestos. 

techUK’s election work 

 

What has techUK done to prepare for this election? 

techUK has been working in anticipation of this election for over two years. This has helped us create a range of materials and input into the main political parties. These include: 

  • Our UK Tech Plan, published in June 2023, sets out a range of policy suggestions on how the next Government can build a better Britain, as well as techUK’s view on the state of the tech sector (link here)

  • Tech Policy Leadership conference June 2023, where we launched our Tech Plan and held discussions with senior politicians from both parties focused on the election (link here)

  • TechUK’s Seven Tech Priorities paper – refining the asks in our UK Tech Plan into seven clear and actionable policy agendas that the next Government should prioritise (link here)

  • Tech Policy Leadership conference March 2024, where we launched our Seven Tech Priorities and hosted key notes speeches from Secretary of State Michelle Donelan MP and Shadow Secretary of State, Peter Kyle MP as well as panel events with key tech-focused political think tanks, Labour Together, the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change and Onward (link here). 

  • We have also prepared a set of resources for political candidates, from briefings to information on how to visit our member organisations. Political candidates who would like to know more should contact us at [email protected] for more information. 

Where can I find all of techUK’s General Election information?

You can find all our public engagement on techUK’s General Election Hub. Here, we have a number of resources for you to better understand what the election means for tech. These include: 

  • Briefings for Prospective Parliamentary Candidates. These are short, sharp and simple briefings, 2-5 pages long, from techUK and our members on a range of tech topics. We’ll be adding to the current list across the course of the campaign, so do make sure to check back regularly. 

  • A signup link for Policy Pulse, techUK’s policy newsletter, that will go out every Friday and give you techUK’s analysis of the big stories from the week. 

  • Insights from techUK on the latest stories and announcements, providing up-to-date analysis of the latest developments. 

  • Insights from techUK members and Parliamentary candidates with their views on the major tech issues coming up during the elections. 

  • Links to techUK’s previous work in preparation for the election (listed above) 

You can also follow techUK on LinkedIN and X (formerly Twitter) regular announcements of blogs, briefings and insights from techUK from today until the General Election.  

We will of course be providing more detailed updates and analysis, including a detailed weekly roundup and flash tech bulletins, to our member organisations via the Public Policy Group, which members can sign up to here. If you are interested in receiving this analysis, then click here to enquire about techUK membership  

For any questions about techUK’s engagement, contact us directly via [email protected] 

With the date of next General Election confirmed, whoever forms the next government will face some serious challenges, from boosting economic growth and supporting public services to tackling climate change. The UK tech sector must be a key partner in addressing these issues. In our UK Tech Plan for the Next UK Government, we outlined the need for the next government to set out a long-term plan for the technology sector and deliver better strategies for key transformative technologies. We look forward to working with whoever forms the next Government to ensure technology continues to drive economic growth and to provide positive societal outcomes for the UK.

Julian Smith

CEO, techUK

Neil Ross

Neil Ross

Associate Director, Policy, techUK

Archie Breare

Archie Breare

Public Affairs Manager, techUK

More work from techUK's Policy & Public Affairs Team:

 

Free to all:

Our Weekly Policy Pulse Newsletter

techUK's Policy Pulse newsletter, is the best way to stay up to date with our analysis of the new Government's latest tech policy developments. You can sign up to receive the newsletter every Friday by clicking the button below!

Sign-up Here

 

Members Only:

Join the Public Policy Group

The Public Policy Group is a forum for senior public policy, public affairs & government relations professionals interested in influencing or understanding the policy landscape impacting the technology industry. The group discuss issues at the top of the political agenda, as well as seeking to identify, highlight and establish industry consensus on the latest developments.

Sign-up Here

Related topics

Policy
Return to listing