Former Public Digital leader to lead UK government’s new digital centre

Former Public Digital partner, Emily Middleton, will take the lead in redesigning the United Kingdom’s (UK) approach to digital government as Director-General, Digital Centre, following the restructuring of the country’s digital government architecture. 

In early July, the newly-elected Labour government announced significant reforms to the UK’s digital government. As part of the reforms, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) will consolidate three key digital government bodies, namely the Government Digital Service, the Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO), and the Incubator for AI (i.AI), to support the digital transformation of public services. 

In a LinkedIn post announcing her new role, Middleton shared that she will be leading the design of “the new digital centre” of the UK government on a temporary basis, alongside other digital government leaders.

The new leadership will be exploring the next bound for the UK’s digital government over the next decade and the role of DSIT in driving efforts, including its strategy, scope, and shape. Issues of concern include improving data exchange, accelerating innovation, and tackling digital exclusion. 

From 2019 to 2024, Middleton led the international practice at UK-based Public Digital, a digital transformation consultancy for public sector organisations. She set up the international practice in 2019, which has supported digital transformation in governments such as in California, Nova Scotia, and Madagascar.  

From January 2024 to July 2024, Middleton took up the role of of advising the opposition party, Labour, advising on digital public services reform. She announced her resignation from Public Digital a week prior to the recent announcement. 

Redesign of digital government architecture

According to a press release, the revamped department’s mission is to transform public services and fuel economic growth with science and technology.

“Britain will not fully benefit from the social and economic potential of science and technology without government leading by example. So, DSIT is to become the centre for digital expertise and delivery in government, improving how the government and public services interact with citizens,” said Secretary of State, Peter Kyle, in the release.

By bringing together the country’s digital government bodies, DSIT will be repositioned as “the digital centre of government” overseeing how the British public interacts with the government, with the stated goal of achieving personalised, convenient, and timesaving services.

The department will also support government departments in their use of technology, upskill civil servants in their use of digital tools and artificial intelligence, and ensure the government has the right infrastructure and regulation for digital transformation. 

Legacy of the UK’s GDS 

The GDS team was the first such digital service team in the world globally, having begun in 2010. The formation of GDS inspired similar digital government units around the world, including in Australia, the United States, Singapore, and elsewhere.

These digital government units adopted a modern approach to adopting digital solutions within government, recruiting tech talent, and redesigning digital service standards, with an emphasis on user-centred design, product-thinking, and building internal capabilities.

The UK regularly tops digital government ranking lists, including the United Nations’ biannual e-government survey, where it made top 10 from 2010 to 2020, and ranked 11 in the 2022 e-government survey.

In 2021, a paper by UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose argued that though GDS had become the gold standard for public digital agencies and had successfully ushered in new capabilities for the UK government, it may have become victim of its own success and has struggled to remain agile.

In Middleton’s LinkedIn post, she referenced 2010’s “Revolution Not Evolution” letter, which was foundational for the creation of GDS. Middleton shared that the new digital centre aims to be as bold and ambitious as the vision laid out in the letter by Martha Lane Fox, the UK’s former Digital Champion.

To read more of our past coverage of GDS and the UK's digital government progress, click here.