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How will IT fare under Gordon Brown?
The same yet different

By Gemma Simpson

Published: Thursday 28 June 2007

How will public sector IT fare under the UK's new Prime Minister?

IT chiefs and analysts predict some key differences between Gordon Brown and his predecessor Tony Blair but warn nobody should hold their breath expecting a sea change.

Ovum analyst Eric Woods said at a policy level, it is unlikely there will be any major changes as much of the current strategy has already been set or endorsed by the Treasury under Gordon Brown's leadership.

Woods added the only possible exception is the ID cards scheme where the imminent rollout offers a political and electoral risk which the new Prime Minister may be wary of taking.

So where is there room for improvement?

Butler Group analyst Sarah Burnett told silicon.com Brown needs to work more closely than Blair did with the users of public sector IT projects to gain a better understanding of what people want and to increase the popularity of such schemes.

One local council IT director told silicon.com there will be little change ahead because neither Blair nor Brown fully understands the impact of well-designed IT solutions on service delivery in the public sector.

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He said: "The possible downside may be that Gordon will look for faster financial return on investment."

The Government Connect platform on which local authorities are developing online services for citizens should be canned because the benefits have not been sold to local authorities, added the local council IT director, and connections are "pointless unless you run services over them".

One difference is Brown is expected to adopt a 'don't start something you can't finish' approach, a strategic advisor to the Institute for the Management of Information Systems told silicon.com.

The advisor added: "The rate of change among top civil servants running major programmes, as well as of ministers, will fall sharply and we will see incremental programmes phased over time."

Earlier this month Richard Granger announced his intention to stand down as head of the NHS IT.

Another departure from Blair is the expectation Brown will have a tighter hold on the day-to-day issues than Blair. Cliff Evans, ID management lead for IT services company Capgemini, told silicon.com: "Blair has always been the visionary while Brown has been the man who's more focussed on the detail."