Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 17
17
Accepted
DSIT's blueprint prioritises reforms for digital leadership and employment models to address skills gaps.
Conclusion
DSIT’s A blueprint for modern digital government also sets out a series of priority reforms. These include commitments to assess the optimum employment models and the competitiveness of the overall package for digital and data staff. To strengthen digital leadership, the blueprint also sets out plans to require all public sector organisations to have a digital leader on their executive committee and a digital non–executive director on their board by 2026.39 DSIT told us that chief digital information officers are “not sufficiently represented at the executive committee level”.40 34 UAIG0006, UAIG0010, UAIG0011, UAIG0018, UAIG0026, UAIG0028, UAIG0029 35 Committee of Public Accounts, Digital transformation in government: addressing the barriers to efficiency, Seventieth Report of Session 2022–23, HC 1229, 13 September 2023; Committee of Public Accounts, Challenges in implementing digital change, Thirtieth Report of Session 2021–22, HC 637, 10 December 2021 36 Q 26 37 Q 26 38 Q 25 39 DSIT, A blueprint for modern digital government, January 2025, p 24 40 Q 27 14 2 Supporting widespread adoption in the public sector Learning from AI pilots and scaling–up
Government Response Summary
DSIT is implementing reforms, including refining the Government Digital and Data Pay Framework and Capability Framework, to address digital skills gaps. Talent pipelines are being developed and cross-sector skills exchange is encouraged through initiatives like TechTrack and the Digital Secondments Programme, with progress to be set out in the forthcoming Government Digital and AI Roadmap.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
3. PAC conclusion: There are persistent digital skills shortages in the public sector and DSIT’s plans to address the skills gap may not be enough. 3. PAC recommendation: DSIT and Cabinet Office should write to the committee alongside publication of the Digital and AI Roadmap to: • explain how the planned reforms are expected to resolve the skills gap and by when, including how they will encourage the flow of digital skills between the private and public sectors, ensure digital leaders are more influential in decision making and embed a digital–first ethos into the civil service. • explain how they will monitor and evaluate the reforms so they can take action swiftly if reforms are not successful, and • set out their plans for reporting progress publicly. 3.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: March 2026 3.2 DSIT acknowledges the ongoing digital skills gaps across the public sector and is taking active steps to implement reforms that address this challenge. 3.3 To strengthen leadership and invest in talent, the government is introducing a requirement for all executive committees to include digital leaders and for boards to appoint digital non-executive directors by 2026. The role of the Government Chief Digital Officer has also been elevated to increase strategic influence over key decisions. 3.4 Further action to attract, retain, and develop digital and data talent is being taken through the refinement of the Government Digital and Data Pay Framework and Capability Framework. 3.5 To support long-term workforce planning, talent pipelines are being developed and cross-sector skills exchange encouraged through initiatives such as TechTrack, the AI Accelerator, and the Digital Secondments Programme. 3.6 The impact of these initiatives will be monitored and evaluated through the Workforce Commission’s bi-annual reporting, the Senior Civil Service Benchmarking Tool, and ongoing workforce data collection. Transparency will be maintained through public reporting, including updates on digital leadership appointments, publication of Workforce Commission outputs (where appropriate), and the launch of major programmes such as TechTrack. 3.7 Further detail on these measures will be set out in the forthcoming Government Digital and AI Roadmap.