Scottish government ICT 'lags behind private sector'

Review led by John McClelland finds Scottish public sector needs drive towards shared infrastrucure and more online services

The Scottish public sector's use of ICT is "lagging" behind the private sector, its use of online services is limited, ICT procurement is poor and there is insufficient sharing of technology, according to a review commissioned by the Scottish Government.

Review of the ICT Infrastructure of the Public Sector in Scotland authored by John McClelland, chair of the Scottish Funding Council, says the gap between the public and private sectors is sometimes a result of late adoption of ICT, or because technology has been overtaken by new developments. But some areas of the public sector are still "untouched" by ICT.

The prevalent model is one of "standalone self-sufficiency", according to the report. Nearly all organisations have fully and professionally staffed information functions and most have their own data centres or data processing rooms, failing to take advantage of the opportunities offered by sharing such facilities.

"Many organisations see ICT as an inhibitor to sharing other internal processes and services rather than the supporting platform that it should be," says the report.

On the costs, McClelland says there is a "deficit" in the availability of ICT expenditure data and no central sector or national collection of spending. But an analysis of available information from an "improvisation based" application revealed that in 2008-09 nearly £900m was spent with suppliers of ICT-related services and goods.

Similarly, at a national level and in most sections of the public sector there is no overall ICT strategy, high level architecture or consistency of approach to design standards.

"Having a coherent overall procurement strategy and operational approach is vital," says the document. "The Scottish public sector could not be further from this ideal at the present time."

The report says that the expanding ICT market is serviced by fewer major companies than five years ago, while thousands of SMEs are keen to sell innovative products.

McClelland concludes that spending on ICT could be reduced by implementing changes in management, structures and strategy. These savings could be partially reinvested in a faster adoption of technology, he says.

The review also highlights the scope to increase the number of online services for citizens and businesses.

Scotland's finance secretary John Swinney said: "The review states that it should be standard to request all public services online and ICT technologies should support more integration across different sectors. That is a vision which the whole of the public sector should aspire to.

"Along with the Public Procurement Reform Board, I will consider in detail the review's findings, but it is clear there must be more effective engagement with the ICT industry and a much clearer focus on breaking down organisational barriers to deliver better public services that focus on users while getting the best value for money."