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Government claims new public sector IT plans will save billions of pounds


The Government will create a public sector computing 'cloud' where public bodies will be able to choose from and host applications. It hopes that its new ICT strategy will be cheaper and more environmentally friendly than the existing setup.

The strategy involves the creation of a single public sector telecoms network; a cloud of applications, called the G-Cloud; a rationalisation of the Government's data centres; and a standardisation of the IT infrastructure and the processes carried out on it.

The Government claims that its new strategy could save £3.2 billion a year from 2013 onwards.

"The government will create one secure, resilient and flexible network which will enable every area of government to adapt their ICT to best deliver for the public," said a statement from the Government's Cabinet Office. "Other changes include, for the first time, bringing together Government departments, local government and wider public sector organisations to remove unnecessary overlaps between departments and avoid costly duplication of technology."

"We have seen a period of significant change over recent months and years. Technology has changed, the economy has changed and ICT in government must also change," said John Suffolk, the Government's chief information officer. "This strategy sets out a new model for Government ICT which will deliver a secure and resilient ICT infrastructure that will enable faster, better services for the public."

The new strategy is designed to guide the development of the Government's use of information technology until 2020. The strategy says that in order to work it will need the Cabinet Office to work closely with the Department for Communities and Local Government to make sure that the wider public sector adopts the changes.

The strategy said that it would, if implemented properly, create a "simplification and standardisation of ICT across the public sector that enables interoperability and data sharing, where appropriate, to deliver improved public services to citizens and businesses".

The Cabinet Office said that the G-Cloud infrastructure would "enable public sector bodies to select and host ICT services from one secure shared network. Multiple services will be available from multiple suppliers on the network making it quicker and cheaper to switch suppliers and ensure systems are best suited to need".

It said that reducing the number of data centres used by Government to 10 or 12 would not only save money but also cut down on power consumption.

The strategy also proposes the creation of a public sector 'applications store'. "The Application Store will be a marketplace for sharing and reusing online computer programs (like standard Office applications such as word processing and email) on a pay by use basis. It will speed up procurement and deliver savings of approximately £500 million per year," said the Cabinet Office.

The Government said that it would save £400m a year by ensuring that all public sector workers shared a common computer desktop design.

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