Dec 20, 2018Postcard from EdinburghDecember 2018, notes — I like Edinburgh a lot. It feels like a proper city. You can tell it’s a proper city because they’ve put the train station in the right place. Smaller cities (Bristol and Cambridge come to mind) insist on hiding their stations around the back, as if you should come in…Travel2 min readTravel2 min read
Dec 20, 2018Postcard from CopenhagenDecember 2018, notes — Even by the standard of international airports, Copenhagen is determined to disguise itself as a shopping centre. It’s as if the architect stood back to admire her work, slapped her forehead and went: “Åh skit! Det er en lufthavn. Jeg blev båret væk med indkøbscenteret. Glem det. Der er masser…Travel3 min readTravel3 min read
Jun 30, 2017What future permanent secretaries should look likeOur leaders must be diverse in how they look, and how they think — At yesterday’s One Team Gov event, I was lucky enough to run a session on this. Here’s a short summary. For context, here are the post-war Cabinet Secretaries — the primus inter pares among Perm Secs. (Come on. This is a topic that demands some Latin).Government4 min readGovernment4 min read
May 13, 2017Ransoming NHS IT is not newFriday’s attack was just more efficient — The NHS malware attack has already led to calls from the Home Secretary for lessons to be learned and IT upgrades made. So here’s a promise: if the political solution to this attack begins and ends with an expensive IT upgrade, this will happen again. When I worked in government…Tech3 min readTech3 min read
Jan 3, 2017A hymn for the (politically) homelessI’ve never been very good at voting. I’ve cast ballots for three different political parties since 2005. But in most cases, I felt there was at least one place I could put a cross on the ticket with a relatively clear conscience. When the political process was unpalatable enough to…Politics3 min readPolitics3 min read
Sep 1, 201629 things that cost less than government ITWales (£16 billion per year) Apple’s Irish tax bill (£11 billion) Covering the Vatican City with blocks of Cathedral City cheddar to a depth of five metres (£15 billion)* Premier League transfer spending over last 5 years (£4 billion, gross spend) Spies (£3 billion per year) The European Union (£8.5…Politics2 min readPolitics2 min read
Published inPublic Innovators’ Network·Aug 1, 2016Losing one is a misfortune. Two?Ah yes, carelessness. Losing two is carelessness. The internet has changed what’s possible in public services. That only happens if the shape and culture of Whitehall reflects the new reality. …Government3 min readGovernment3 min read
May 30, 2016Policy without the Hot AirBe honest about uncertainty. Be data led. Build something, iteratively. And make it open. — David MacKay, former Chief Scientist at the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC), died in April. He was only 48. Many Ministers and senior officials sent their condolences. David owed Whitehall nothing; he gave five years of redoubtable service. Private Eye doesn’t fall over itself to give praise to…Government6 min readGovernment6 min read
Apr 25, 2016Preparing for the day digital diesPublic service reformers often have to lean heavily on words. Words like delivery, nudge or digital. Exact definitions of these words are hard to pin down. They are designed as loose clothing for a set of ideas and attitudes, corralling together those keen to shake up the status quo. Leaders…Digital2 min readDigital2 min read
Published inPublic Innovators’ Network·Mar 30, 2016Why trust beats hierarchyThere has been some wonderful writing about leadership in the last 3 months, nailing the qualities of inspirational individuals. I’ll take fifty each of Kit, Janet and Benji please. If the Cabinet Secretary was presented with these 150 exceptional people, all his prayers would surely be answered. One per major…Government3 min readGovernment3 min read
