announcements from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology today were valuable in this regard.
The department says:
Technology will be better used to improve public services and AI will make the civil service more efficient to turbocharge the Prime Minister’s Plan for Change, under a shake up that changes how government experiments with, buys and builds new tech.
A new package of AI tools – nicknamed ‘Humphrey’ – will be available to civil servants in an effort to modernise tech and deliver better public services to set the country on course for a decade of national renewal.
This follows a review which found that the government inherited a dire system which over relies on ways of communicating that should be left in the last century – with HMRC taking 100,000 calls a day and DVLA processing 45,000 letters.
But the press release also includes this line – which suggests government spin doctors might be trying just a bit too hard to crowbar “promoting growth” into every government announcement.
It will do away with insensitive and antiquated processes that have been holding this country back for too long. That means scrapping the need for people to queue at the local council to register the death of a loved one, and doing away with the need to post an advert in your local paper if you want to buy a lorry – getting in the way of growth.
here.
The speech was briefed in advance and Jones has just delivered what was billed as the top line. He said:
We are long overdue a reckoning with government spending, and a realistic appraisal of how we are using taxpayers’ money.
But, just before he started, Jones said he wanted to keep his speech short, because he wanted more time for the Q&A, which he said might be more interesting.
Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner.
Sources said that Alli, who is worth an estimated £200m, told the gathering of the political cabinet in No 10 that the party was “reinvigorating” fundraising, with the coffers still empty even though it was six months since the general election.
They clarified that Lord Alli had not been given a Downing Street pass, but was invited along with Labour’s new general secretary, Hollie Ridley, to give a presentation on party organisation and resourcing.
The Labour donor became embroiled in the row over ‘freebies’ last year after it emerged that he had been given a temporary Downing Street pass, prompting accusations of cronyism given he had donated to the party and the prime minister but did not hold an official government role.
Alli’s allies said that he had never asked for anything in return for his support, and had no ambitions of his own to hold political office. His appearance at political cabinet suggests that No 10 believes the row has blown over sufficiently for him to take on a more prominent role.
One cabinet minister said: “Waheed knows all the people so it makes sense for him to take on the fundraising role again.” Labour declared more donations than all other parties combined during the general election campaign, taking more than £9.5m in total.
Labour insiders said they were “grateful” for Alli’s continued support for party fundraising, with county elections in England just weeks away in which Reform UK is expected to perform well, at the expense of the Tories. The contests in Scotland and Wales next year are regarded internally as the first major electoral test for the prime minister.
Defending Alli’s role, party sources argued that there would be zero public appetite for the alternative to raising funds through donations from wealthy individuals, which would be for the taxpayer to fund the political system.
A Labour party spokesperson said:
The Labour party’s general secretary, Hollie Ridley, updated the political cabinet on party organisation and resourcing. Waheed Alli also spoke in his fundraising role.
The prime minister thanked them both for the work they were doing to ensure the party was in the best possible place for this year’s elections and beyond.
Israel government mentioned this in its readout of the call, although the UK govermnent issued a readout in which weapons export licences were not mentioned.
The UK government suspended 30 arms licences for Israel last year because of the risk the weapons could be used in breach of international humanitarian law. Although the move affected less then a tenth of all arms licences for Israel, the decision infuriated the Israeli government – not so much for its practical impact, but because of its reputational impact.
In a statement about the Starmer/Netanyahu call today, the Israeli government said:
Prime minister Netanyahu raised the issue of the weapons export licences to Israel that have been frozen in the UK.
Prime Minister Starmer said that an evaluation of the issue is being carried out.
The UK government readout did not mention this part of the conversation. It said the two leaders discussed the release of hostages, and the need for “the next stages of the ceasefire deal implemented in full”.
At the Downing Street lobby briefing this afternoon, the No 10 spokesperson could not say why the two accounts of the call were different.
On the frozen arms export licences, the spokesperson said:
We’ve been consistent in saying that we keep these things under review. Clearly, the maintenance of that ceasefire is a priority.
Downing Street could also not say whether the ceasefire may lead to a change in the government’s position on the suspended licences.
Source: theguardian.com
