Image source: GOV.UK, Open Government Licence v3.0
Karin Smyth and Stephen Kinnock have been announced as the new Government’s ministers with digital and data responsibilities in the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC).
Smyth has been appointed to the role of minister of state for health (secondary care) with oversight of a range of issues included data and technology for NHS England.
The brief includes oversight of cyber security in the sector and the development of the NHS Federated Data Platform, which will provide widespread links between data sources of different organisations to support analysis and planning.
The development has been the subject of controversy due largely to appointment of a consortium led by Palantir Technologies to develop the software. The company has a background in supporting national security agencies and some commentators have expressed fears over its potential for accessing personal data through the platform.
Innovation, assurance and integration
Kinnock has been made minister of state for care, a role that includes responsibility technological innovation, system assurance and data and the integration of health and social care.
DHSC has been actively pressing for wider digitalisation of and the application of assistive technology in social care, with moves such as setting targets for the roll out of digital records and developing an interoperability architecture for data sharing in the sector.
