During parliamentary discussions this week, MPs examined the implications of Prime Minister Andy Burnham's summer reshuffle for entities navigating Whitehall. Liz Lloyd, a parliamentary under-secretary of state, operates across two departments, managing a scope of responsibilities comparable to a weekly grocery list.
Following the removal of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), oversight of tech industry engagement regarding datacenter construction shifted to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (BIST). Lloyd, who serves within BIST and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), noted that digital infrastructure is housed within DCMS.
Speaking before the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee, Lloyd conceded that some departmental duties exhibited overlap. She stated, "In terms of sector responsibilities, that is clear that technology, sorry, that telecom sits with DCMS and datacenters with BIST. When you're actually in an industry or you're trying to run a business, that that that is clear."
Obtaining power for a datacenter facility would likely fall under the Department for Energy and Net Zero, according to available information. While local government holds responsibility for planning permission, the overarching policy resides with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Despite potential clarity in departmental assignments, the operational complexity remains substantial. This difficulty was evidenced earlier this month when Microsoft withdrew from plans for Britain's largest AI supercomputer due to power procurement challenges.
When questioned about the government's early 2025 projection that modernizing older technology and digitizing processes could yield £45 billion in productivity gains, the junior minister clarified the figure's nature. She remarked, "The £45 billion figure was an estimate of long-term productivity gains. It wasn't a kind of one-off figure for savings… it was never a figure that was a target or a cashable savings figure."
The January 2025 press release, issued under the Starmer government, titled "Archaic tech sees public sector miss £45 billion annual savings," detailed that taxpayer-funded services, from the NHS to local councils, are foregoing £45 billion in productivity savings due to reliance on outdated technology. The communication asserted the government would "tackle these issues" using "digital tools, AI and common sense to overhaul public sector technology."
These departmental delineations and productivity projections highlight the ongoing structural challenges facing infrastructure deployment within the UK's public and private technology sectors.
