Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
Karsten Wenzlaff is a Crowdfunding and Fintech Expert from Germany. He is Secretary-General of Digit[...]
Canada Can Learn from UK’s £100M Public Service Reform
UK Innovation | Dec 17, 2024
Image: Freepik/Vectorarte
Canada Should Take a Page From the UK Government's £100 Million Public Service Reform Initiative
There are a myriad of reasons why governments globally are racing to modernize from being inefficient bureaucracies to evolving expectations of citizens, rapid technology advancements, economic competitiveness and need to attract talent etc. Under this backdrop earlier this week, the UK government announced a £100 million initiative led by Pat McFadden, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster to solve the country's most pressing issues with a focus on innovation, agility, and measured results.
The UK’s Plan for Change
It's all part of the UK's broader 'Plan for Change' that aims to transform public services by adopting techniques from the technology sector to achieve five national missions, such as kick starting economic growth and breaking down the barriers to opportunity. The plan is a significant cultural shift in how government operates, and offers Canada lessons to learn from to improve its own public services using a similar approach.
See: Freeland Resigns as Canada at Economic Crossroads
The plan calls for establishing a 'test and learn' culture, which will be an iterative and user-centric approach (think data-driven) to addressing challenges like housing and family support services. Starting in 2025, small teams will be sent to various regions such as Manchester, Sheffield, and Liverpool to experiment with solutions. In tech terms, it's akin to running a pilot project.
Pat McFadden, initiative lead said:
“Test it. Fix the problems. Change the design. Test it again. Tweak it again. And so on, and so on, for as long as you provide the service. Suddenly, the most important question isn’t, ‘How do we get this right the first time?’. It’s ‘How do we make this better by next Friday?’”
A Cultural Shift Toward Innovation
This is a huge cultural change for government, and it's as much about introducing innovative techniques as much as it is a shift away from traditional, bureaucratic models and requires accepting a mindset that encourages experimentation and adaptability. McFadden stated,“If we keep governing as usual, we are not going to achieve what we want to achieve.” Some of the reform effort includes introducing various key techniques to drive change:
See: Rachel Reeves: UK’s Financial Innovation Blueprint
- Agile approach to development where solutions will be achieved iteratively with regular testing and improvements.
- Services will be built based on public needs and feedback.
- Teams will use data/digital tools to track progress and make informed 'data-driven' decisions.
- Teams and work will be outcome-orientated, aiming for clear and measurable results instead of creating long strategy documents.
Fresh Talent Into Government
A major part of this initiative is the need to bring new talent with fresh ideas and cross sector collaboration to avoid silos and redundant work. The UK is recruiting professionals from the tech industry for 6-12 month 'Tours of Duty' to tap into private sector talent and apply the latest skills to public challenges. At the same time, front-line public service leaders are being encouraged to share their practical insights for change. The government is also simplifying its recruitment process to rid of 'mind-boggling bureaucracy,' to attract high-caliber talent more effectively.
“They are the ones on the ground who can see how things are working, where the obstacles are, and where a policy won’t survive contact with reality.”
Lessons for Canada
From housing shortages to lengthy healthcare wait times, Canada suffers from many of the same issues that the UK is dealing with. Canada may find creative, scalable solutions with its own "test and learn" strategy, and could quicken the speed of impactful change by allowing small teams to try new approaches to solve problems.
See: Overcoming Barriers to Growth in Financial Regulation
The Canadian government would be better off to collaborate with digital talent, streamline government procedures, and focus on quantifiable results. All of these changes might improve transparency, and increase public confidence in government.s, this change would increase public confidence in the government.
A Vision for Modern Government
By focusing on innovation, adaptability, and real-world results towards meaningful change both the UK and Canada (if taking a page from the UK's book) could reinvigorate the public sector, making it more dynamic, efficient, and responsive to the needs of its citizens in modern times.
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