New measures to protect the nation’s critical infrastructure and digital services from cyber attacks and computer network failure come into force today.

Bosses of firms in health, water, energy, transport and digital infrastructure will now be expected to have robust safeguards in place against cyber threats and report breaches and network outages to regulators within 72 hours or they face fines of up to £17 million.

The new law announced by Digital Minister Margot James will help reduce the number of damaging cyber attacks affecting the UK.

The National Cyber Security Centre, set up by the government in October 2016 as part of GCHQ, has already responded to more than 950 significant incidents, including WannaCry.

It will also give new regulators powers to assess critical industries and make sure plans are in place to prevent attacks.

The regulator will have the power to issue legally-binding instructions to improve security, and – if necessary – impose significant fines.

The legislation will also cover other threats affecting IT such as hardware failures and environmental hazards.

Margot James, Minister for Digital and the Creative Industries, said:

It’s vital that we put in place tough new measures to strengthen the UK’s cyber security and make sure we are the safest place in the world to live and be online.

Organisations must act now to make sure that they are primed and ready to stop potential cyber attacks and be resilient against major disruption to the services we all rely on.

Fines would be a last resort and will not apply to operators which have assessed the risks adequately, taken appropriate security measures and engaged with regulators but still suffered an attack.

Incidents must be reported directly to the appropriate regulator. Where an incident has a cyber security aspect, organisations should contact the NCSC for support and advice. The NCSC will also act as the Single Point of Contact between the UK and EU Member States.

As the UK’s technical authority on cyber security, the NCSC is supporting competent authorities and has developed a set of 14 cyber security principles, as well as supporting guidance, to improve the cyber security of operators of essential services.

Ciaran Martin, Chief Executive of the NCSC, said:

These new measures will help to strengthen the security of the UK’s infrastructure.

By acting on the National Cyber Security Centre’s expert technical advice and reporting incidents, organisations can protect themselves against those who would do us harm.

The UK government is committed to making the UK the safest place to live and do business online, but we can’t do this alone. Every citizen, business and organisation must play their part.

The NIS Directive is an important part of the Government’s five-year £1.9 billion National Cyber Security Strategy to protect the nation from cyber threats and make the UK the safest place to live and work online. It will ensure essential service operators are taking the necessary action to protect their IT systems.

We are modernising our courts and tribunals system to make it more straightforward, accessible and efficient for all. It’s an ambitious £1bn programme designed to improve it for both those who use it for those who work within it.

Over the last six months, we have held a series of roadshow events to engage and inform legal professionals on the reform agenda, and we are holding another event in London on 24 May 2018 as part of an ongoing schedule of activities designed to hear your views. So, if you are a legal professional or professional court user, we would be delighted if you would attend this event to hear more about what we are doing and have the opportunity to ask HMCTS Chief Executive, Susan Acland-Hood, any questions you may have.

As our reform programme gathers pace, we want to hear from legal professionals, giving you the opportunity to ask questions and share your ideas to ensure the changes are making the system better for all. We do hope you can make it.

Please use the link below to book your place at the event. Spaces are limited.

Book your place for roadshow event on 24 May 2018

If you are unable to attend the event in person, you can view the event through a live stream which will available on this page 30mins before the event starts. You are welcome to submit questions in advance. Please include your name, area of practice and organisation along with your question.

During the event, we will be using Slido to take additional questions. On the day of the event, we will provide the Slido event code on this page so you can participate.

Daesh poses a threat to UK national security as it seeks to expand its terror network, using propaganda to radicalise and recruit citizens from the UK and across the world. The Home Office already has the technology to determine 94% of Daesh videos with 99.995% accuracy. However, 80% of Daesh media is still imagery. These images, tailored for local markets, rarely contain consistent features meaning innovation is needed to have the same success as for video.

We are looking for concepts that can be developed into workable solutions. Winning companies will be awarded up to £50,000 to develop their ideas. A further £500,000 may be available to continue development and test the successful solutions in the public sector.

There are 5 different challenge competitions in the first GovTech Catalyst round.

This challenge competition closes on 27 June 2018. Registration for this competition closes on 20 June 2018. No late applications can be accepted.

Why pitch a solution to a GovTech challenge competition

The GovTech challenge is your opportunity to help improve vital public services while growing your business. We’re looking for firms to come up with smart solutions to fix public-sector problems. You’ll get the opportunity to work with high-profile public-sector partners and to raise your profile both nationally and internationally.

How to pitch a solution

Companies can pitch a solution to an open challenge competition on the Innovation Funding Service website. Each challenge competition page includes information on how to apply, the dates, funding available, project scope and challenge context.

There will also be launch events for each challenge competition where interested companies can meet people from the public sector body responsible for the challenge (the challenge owner). Sign up to the GovTech community mailing list for dates and more information.

You can also join the GovTech Catalyst team at monthly meetups to connect the GovTech sector to the public sector.

Round 1 competition schedule

We’ll add dates and links as the competitions launch:

• Identifying Daesh still imagery (open 14 May to 27 June 2018)

• Tracking waste through the waste chain (opening June 2018)

• Tackling loneliness and rural isolation (opening July 2018)

• Cutting traffic congestion (opening August 2018)

• Deploying smart sensors on council vehicles to improve services (opening September 2018)

About the GovTech Catalyst

GovTech aims to encourage small, emerging technology businesses to create and develop innovative solutions to public services, that once proven can move to scale both to the advantage of markets and society.

GovTech Catalyst competitions help the public sector identify and work with cutting edge technology firms. They use the SBRI process, supported by Innovate UK.

Read more about the GovTech Catalyst programme aims.

Secretary of State for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Michael Gove, has approved the appointment of Chris Nicholson to the role of Chair of the Animal and Plant Health Agency’s (APHA) Board, following a competitive selection process.

The appointment started on 1 May 2018 and will run for three years.

Biographical details

Chris has spent his career as an economist and corporate and project finance specialist, primarily at KPMG. For the past year he has been an interim director at the East West Railway Company.

During 2016, he was project director of the Cabinet Office sponsored Regulatory Futures Review which looked at best practice regulation and how to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of non-economic statutory regulators.

He started his career as a government economist before joining KPMG where he was a partner for 17 years including periods as Head of Central Government and Head of the Public Sector practice.

Chris also served as a Special Adviser in the Department of Energy and Climate Change during the coalition government.

The latest in a line of reports by the Committee on Standards in Public Life says there has been little real progress on measures to reinforce ethical standards in outsourced public services and calls for a consultation on whether the Freedom of Information Act should apply to private sector providers where information relates to the performance of a public service contract.

Publishing its 2018 progress report today, Lord Bew, Chair of the Committee on Standards in Public Life, said:

From waste disposal to health care and probation services, all kinds of public services are routinely supplied to many of us by private or voluntary sector organisations, paid for with public funds – accounting for almost one third of government spending in 2017.

The public is clear that they expect common ethical standards – whoever is delivering the service – and that when things go wrong there is transparency and accountability about what has happened.

Our report in 2014 looked at departmental commissioning activity and the ethical standards of service providers and made a number of important and straightforward recommendations to enhance the government’s capability to commission services from providers who focus on high ethical standards in service delivery.

Today’s report shows that, disappointingly, very little progress has been made on implementing these recommendations and evidence shows that most service providers need to do more to demonstrate best practice in ethical standards.

In particular, we remain concerned over the lack of internal governance and leadership on ethical standards in those departments with significant public service contracts. Departmental and management boards spend little, if any, time considering ethical considerations and tend to delegate such issues ‘down the line’. Those involved in commissioning and auditing contracts remain too focused on the quantitative rather than the qualitative aspects of their role. And departments lack clear lines of accountability when contracts fail.

While many service providers have developed a greater awareness of their ethical obligations in recent years, partly due to the high-profile failure of some organisations to adhere to these standards, some remain dismissive of the Nolan Principles or adopt a ‘pick and mix’ approach, which is not in the public interest. And many service providers continue to expect that setting and enforcing ethical standards remain a matter for government alone.

The Committee remains of the view that more must be done to encourage strong and robust cultures of ethical behaviour in those delivering public services. To that end, the Committee reaffirms the recommendations made in its 2014 report and has made a further set of more detailed, follow-up recommendations to address particular issues of concern.

In particular, the Committee calls for service providers to recognise that the Nolan Principles apply to them, for greater moral courage among key financial and other professionals in securing and maintaining high ethical standards, and for consultation on the extension of the application of the Freedom of Information Act to private sector providers where information relates to the performance of a contract with government for the delivery of public services.

Following the corporate failures of a number of the biggest providers of services to government since 2013,
including the devastating collapse of Carillion early in 2018, it is now essential that the government confirm their expectations of ethical standards among those who deliver services with public money.”

The report can be downloaded online.

Notes to Editors: Interview requests and media enquiries should go to Maggie O’Boyle on 07880 740627. You can follow the Committee on twitter @PublicStandards.

1. The independent Committee on Standards in Public Life advises the Prime Minister on ethical standards across the whole of public life in the UK. It monitors and reports on issues relating to the standards of conduct of all public office holders.

2. To find out more about the Committee’s work go to the Committee on Standards in Public Life’s website

3. The Committee on Standards in Public Life was established in October 1994 with the following terms of reference: “To examine current concerns about standards of conduct of all holders of public office, including arrangements relating to financial and commercial activities, and make recommendations as to any changes in present arrangements which might be required to ensure the highest standards of propriety in public life.” Additional terms of reference were announced on 12 November 1997: “To review issues in relation to the funding of political parties, and to make recommendations as to any changes in present arrangements.” On 5 February 2013 the terms of reference were clarified by the Government in two respects: ‘…in future the Committee should not inquire into matters relating to the devolved legislatures and governments except with the agreement of those bodies’ and ‘…the Committee’s remit to examine “standards of conduct of all holders of public office” [encompasses For] all those involved in the delivery of public services, not solely those appointed or elected to public office.’ Hansard (HC), 5 February 2013, Col 7WS .The Committee’s terms of reference were further clarified in a House of Lords written Parliamentary Question on 28th February 2013 to explain that the Committee’s remit means it “can examine issues relating to the ethical standards of the delivery of public services by private and voluntary sector organisations, paid for by public funds, even where those delivering the services have not been appointed or elected to public office.” Hansard (HL) Column WA347.

4. The members of the Committee for this report are: Lord (Paul) Bew, Chairman, Rt Hon Dame Margaret Beckett DBE MP (Labour), Sheila Drew Smith OBE, Simon Hart MP (Conservative), Dr Jane Martin CBE, Dame Shirley Pearce OBE, Jane Ramsey, Monisha Shah, Rt Hon Lord (Andrew) Stunell OBE (Liberal Democrat) and Richard Thomas CBE. Richard Thomas CBE finished his 5-year term in office in May 2017. Sheila Drew Smith OBE, who led on this series of reports, finished her 5-year term of office in February 2018.