Video Library

Join PPP to welcome Rt Hon Amber Rudd to her new role as Deputy Chair, Energy and Climate. Chair Rt Hon Stephen Dorrell will be speaking to Amber about her view of the current policy landscape as well as PPP’s Maximising COP26 project.

Chair Rt Hon Stephen Dorrell was joined by Neil Carmichael, former Chair of Education Select Committee and Desmond Deehan, CEO of Odyssey Trust for Education to discuss the public health implications of children not returning to school, the long-term impacts of the disruption caused by the pandemic and the immediate policy steps that must be taken to ease the concerns of parents, teachers and pupils.

Over the past decade, the everyday lives of citizens across the globe have become increasingly entrenched with digital technology, with physical and digital lives now inextricable from one another. However, due to patchy coverage, large swathes of the population are simply unable to access this new wave of technology and have been left more excluded than ever. This became most obvious during the Covid-19 pandemic when citizens and businesses alike became entirely dependent on their connectivity as their work, entertainment and social lives went digital overnight. With emerging trends of remote working and digitised public services likely to continue, the demand for digital is only predicted to increase, putting more pressure on digital connectivity infrastructure and skills than ever before. Over the past four months, Public Policy Projects (PPP) in partnership with Anderson Strategy launched an inquiry into the digital connectivity needs and challenges across the nation by gaining insight from public and private sector workers at the forefront of these changes. The launch of this white paper will hear a presentation of these findings and recommendations for government on the necessary changes needed in order to meet future needs and fulfil digital potential. To do this, a fundamental paradigm shift is needed to create a new digital operating model across all levels to ensure the UK is not just moving at its current speed but instead driving the digital change.