Think tank to UK government: You can't build the future on systems from the past

Legacy IT in government is deteriorating rather than improving, creating risks for digital service ambitions and efficiency goals. Flagship technology programs face failure risk unless the approach to outdated systems changes. Evidence points to neglected remediation of dangerously outdated platforms, driven by how money is prioritized and managed across departments. Problems include difficulties migrating the Police National Database to the cloud, a data breach exposing Afghan informants, and failures in farm payments systems. The report identifies departmental control and the funding model as core issues, with funding arriving as crisis or maintenance rather than transformation. Systems are not modernized until they fail, widening the gap between system capabilities and service requirements over time.

"“In Westminster the money doesn't get prioritized for tech, and so behind the scenes successive governments have neglected to fix many dangerously outdated systems, leaving a ticking time bomb for future generations to defuse,” said Joe Hill, co-author of the report, director of Strategy at Re:State and former Treasury civil servant."

"“Systems aren't transformed unless they fail in substantial ways. The result is that the gap between what systems can do and what services require widens each year. Departments fall behind with out-of-date technology stacks by relying on aging platforms that constrain service design, data use, and automation, which leaves them with ever more catch-up to play at a later date as operational urgency rises,” it states."

"“The problem lies in departmental control of legacy system remediation and the funding model for those projects.”"

"“Funding comes in two forms: crisis funding or maintenance funding.”"

Read at theregister