A Digital Strategy
for Parliament
Rob Greig Director of the Digital Service

We will see further exponential
change between now and 2020

Digital technology will cease to be
a separate and distinct domain
“We won’t think about going
online or looking on the
internet for something - we’ll
just be online, and just look”.
Joe Touch , director - USC Information
Sciences Institute

There will be an exponential growth in BIG data
Free access to ‘open data’ will increase
“This will change how we
think about people, how we
establish trust, how we
negotiate change, failure
and success”.
Judith Donath, fellow at Harvard
University

Technology will provide new ways
to harness the crowd
“This will change a lot of
social practices such as
dating , job hunting and
professional networking and
gaming as well as policing
and espionage”.
Daren C. Brabham, a professor at the Annenburg
School for communication and journalism USC

We will be using devices that don’t
even exist today
“The most significant impact of the
Internet is getting us to imagine
different paths that the future may take.
These paths help us to be better
prepared for the long-term
contingencies; flexible enough to
accommodate change”.
Sonigitu Asibong Ekpe, Agecare Foundation

Everything will be connected to
the Internet
“We are truly going through a
paradigm shift. The greatest
impact of the Internet is what
we are already witnessing, but
it is going to accelerate”.
Nishant Shah, professor, Centre for Digital
Culture at Leuphana University, Germany

Linear TV will not exist like it does
today
“We’ll free them (the YouTube
generation) from the conventional
commissioning process and
encourage them to experiment and
make original online content so they
can inform, educate and entertain
each other”.
Tony Hall, Director General BBC

”The internet has fundamentally changed the
structure of all organisations and industries”
Mike Bracken

[T]echnology in itself is not a panacea and it
will not effectively correct poor existing
practices…we need to look beyond new
digital tools to existing processes that do
and do not work, and then critically explore
how technology can help us to make
democracy work better.”
The Democratic Society

As a member I want a digital strategy
so that I have a clear sense of how
digital technology can help me to be
more effective in my role
As a member of administrative staff
I want a digital strategy so that it can
support my decision making and help
me meet my objectives
As a member of the Digital Service I
want a digital strategy so that I
know what my priorities are and
how can help meet the strategic
objectives of both Houses
As a member of the public I want a
digital strategy so that I can see how
Parliament plans to take advantage
of digital technology and have
confidence that tax payers money is
being spent effectively

3 Things to remember
1. This is a digital strategy for Parliament
3. The strategy is about change and will
change
2. The strategy must deliver

Excellent digital
services
for a modern
Parliament

Aspirations
1. Secure technology that works
2. Good customer service
3. Digital capability
4. Transparent, open and inclusive
5. Effective
6. Efficient, reducing cost
7. Business enabling
8. Digital by default

Principles
1. Start with user needs
2. Focus on our core work
3. Be where people are
4. Continuous iteration
5. Simplicity
6. Unity without uniformity
7. Collaboration culture
8. Open
9. Experts in what we do