Legacy IT systems are causing problems for come customer groups of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), according to a new report from Parliament’s Public Affairs Committee (PAC).
It says the department is making good progress in tackling the most urgent problems, but that it lacks a long term strategy for digital transformation and customers are finding its systems “outdated and difficult to use”, often having to rely on paper forms or documents.
This follows a report late last year from the National Audit Office, which said Defra is facing serious problems in upgrading its digital estate.
Defra has estimated that it needs to spend £726 million on modernising legacy services between 2021-25, and that fully transforming its digital systems could save £20-25 million per year.
Several problems
But the PAC report says that, while progress has been made, the majority of the department’s applications are still not fully supported, it does not have a strategy for transformation, which creates a risk of it wasting money on digital services, and it is over-reliant on contractors because of a lack of internal skills.
In addition, it does not measure the cost to users of unmodernised digital services and has not given enough attention to the impact on them.
In response, the report makes recommendations including that Defra should: develop a digital and data strategy covering all the organisations within its group; set out how it will identify the problems and costs faced by service users; make sure it does not invest in systems before key decisions about tis further shape; and explain new approach to recruiting staff with digital skills.
It is also urged to develop its analysis of efficiency savings that could be achieved through investments in digital.
Cannot continue
Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, deputy chair of the PAC, said: “Defra’s IT systems are so outmoded and disconnected - where they exist at all, instead of paper forms - that in some cases the professionals who keep our food, water and air safe have been forced to buy obsolete equipment just to fill in the forms to fulfil their regulatory responsibilities.
“We are facing down rapidly spreading animal diseases, maybe the next pandemic, with systems that may rely on moving paper forms around. This cannot continue.
“We on the PAC will also not accept a situation where Defra spends hundreds of millions of taxpayers’ money on a disjointed upgrade programme only to find that it no longer fits the structure of new systems of air quality monitoring, food and clean water supply in this country. It’s time for a complete overhaul at Defra, with a concurrent, pro-active digital strategy that matches every step.”
