This new blog post from @jamestplunkett.bsky.social (informed by the thinking he's been doing with @richardpope.org and me) is essential reading.

We've been overwhelmed by the number (and quality!) of people expressing interest in these roles, so going to close to the window at Thursday lunchtime. Watch this space for more on the new inititiative. Should be able to say more early next week.

I couldn't make it into the office today due to the strikes. Instead I'm working on a park bench in the glorious sunshine thanks to superfast #GovWifi from the local crematorium.

Presumably at some point the US will use export controls + the fact many health systems use American software to similar effect. e.g. limiting use of US software in relation to reproductive rights / mRNA

Love this idea from @bm.wel.by - could be a relatively easy quality-of-life policy win if done correctly: bm.wel.by/2025/08/26/u...

Had to revise down my working hours to a couple of days a week and put a pause on all book related stuff and writing for the foreseeable. Just given notice on my office. This decade has feel like the cycle between the chaotic / stable eras from 3 body problem without option to dehydrate.

Scouts, skills for life! (volcano related parenting injury)

Platformland activity club ❤️

#policywonks Interested to know if this happens in other fields? Tech policy is littered with overly simple solutions that will never do what it says on the tin but which *can* easily be communicated to the media or understood by politicians with low technical literacy.

Thinking out loud on the NHS 10 year plan ... richardpope.org/notes/nhs10-...

My house, and as a result my head, is mostly kpop demon hunters songs on a loop each waking minute with no coming up for air. Luckily v good tunes.

Given the prevalence of 'capability mapping' in old style IT projects, and how much consultancies still push it today, you'd think there would be an evidence base that if you do it, it means you get better outcomes. Drawing a blank so far. Any pointers?

"My antisemitic social network poisoned my credulous AI" 😭

For all the talk of digital and growth, there's been surprising little on creating a digital economy. Here's a few ideas for starters: www.nesta.org.uk/feature/digi...

I know it's been great for many people, but as a dyslexic, adhd person, the move to remote, document first, time boxed working regularly borders on the impossible. Add in the precariousness of freelancing and 'life events' and it's hard to make it work.

I've started a new blog called 'ways of doing' which is about ways of doing digital. Thanks to @matthewsheret.com for suggesting the name.

Downloads gov.uk app > can't login because I can't track down auth code. What percentage of the population will experience the same every day? Much respect to the team in getting it out in short order, but ...

This is now on the Firefox Extension's site for easy installation addons.mozilla.org/en-GB/androi...

When it comes to failure heuristics in public sector digital projects I'm yet to come across a stronger signal than: "we are breaking down all the capabilities from level 1 to level 3". It's guesswork that ...

The numbers in this from @emercoleman.bsky.social are pretty stark... www.computerweekly.com/opinion/AI-v...

Lots to like in this... Abstract away the complexity so it's better for people. Save time for clinicians so they can spend time on what matters. Start small to understand what works. Maybe even grow the economy if you get it right.

In Prague for a packed Creative Bureaucracy Festival

I've written some essays for Nesta on applying the ideas from Platformland to the UK government's missions. Here's the first one ... www.nesta.org.uk/feature/digi...

For clarity, there are lots of sensible things in the Labour Together paper and I am not against digital credentials, but the product proposition needs a lot of work - the relationship between digital identity, a very long list of other credentials, wallet, services and different layers of gov.

A single 'card' to prove eligibility for a wide range of things is to misunderstand digital ID. Sad to say this feels like a 90s idea in search of 20's digital credibility www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

'The bind weed of modernity' is a very good set of words public.digital/pd-insights/...

Loving this from @bm.wel.by bm.wel.by/2025/06/03/v... a route back to hope though making stuff

Very belatedly passed my driving test 30 years later than I could have. 3 minor faults. Undue interest in the GOV.UK design system based form used by the examiner did not seem to count against me.

Just had to report resting heatrate and blood pressure to GP by sending a screenshot from an app. Feel simultaneously optimal and suboptimal. No pesky permissions management or api keys, no extra tools required, but then I just emailed a screenshot of personal health data.

🚨 Reminder! 🚨 Our next event will be at the MoJ and online on Weds May 28th. * Noel Hatch,Adur & Worthing Councils, on Redesigning from the inside out: learning as we change * ​Lucy Makinson, i.AI, on Consult: An AI Tool for Enhanced Public Consultation Analysis Register here : lu.ma/rhvufmwx.

Software is never done

Looking for recommendations for EU/UK based alternatives to Substack so I can move (and hopefully restart) my newsletter.

Slowly moving my personal blog over to blot.im It turns an iCloud folder into a website. Tempting leaves a bit to be desired, but worth it for the removal of friction.

I wonder if these new regional civil service hubs will have functioning procedures for getting building passes.

From nearly 10 years ago - empathy, augmented - public services as digital assistants richardpope.org/notes/empath...

Digital sector life hack: when reading an AI related thing, try mentally replacing 'AI' with another technology and see if it sounds silly "We will setup a dedicated databases unit to leverage the use of databases", "We will setup a dedicated integers unit to leverage the use of integers"

Good that there's moves to digitise exam results, but I really hope this doesn't become another silo app: feweek.co.uk/colleges-tri... Seems not to be heading towards convergence with GOV.UK wallet and (as far as I can tell) has its own signin process?

Enjoyed Land Talks #1

MK marathon ✅

A month later than intended, but here we go...

47. How did that happen? If anyone finds the last decade down the back of the sofa, please return.

I hope this rollout measures doctors ability to reflect on their patents' situation. It may well make it better (more eye contact, less typing) but could make it worse (because writing is partly admin, partly thinking time). Important to know. www.gov.uk/government/n...

One more terrific talk from the #UserNeedsFirst #GovDesign conference went up on YouTube: @richardpope.org’s closing keynote, “Beyond user needs: Why we need an expanded design philosophy for the digital public sector” with plenty of food for thought— youtu.be/0z3trE1RAlk

Sadiq Khan / TfL gave the go ahead for a road tunnel without building an equivalent fixed cycle bridge/tunnel in east london … so critical mass took things into their own hands and turned the Silvertown tunnel into a cycle route.

Digital sovereignty question: are there examples of countries putting export controls on software for political reasons not related to national security or trade?

🚨 EVENT KLAXON! 🚨 The next @transformgovtalks.bsky.social event will be at the MoJ and online on Weds April 30th with the following great speakers. * Catherine Day - cross-government participatory methods forum * ​Cabinet Office Test, Learn and Grow team Register here : lu.ma/c3wlyoz0

An occasional thread of non-book things that libraries lend ...

"These are not benign actors, scrappy startup founders who move fast and break things - they share world views that are destroying our democracies as we know it." www.computerweekly.com/opinion/Im-f... In which Emer Coleman draws a dotted line between Musk, Zuckerberg and Jacob Rees-Mogg's father