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Peter Wells Profile picture
Peter Wells
@peterkwells
Mixing tech & politics. Hopes to make stuff work for everyone. Accidentally got seagulls blocked from Google meet.
May 6, 2022 • 5 tweets • 3 min read
"Government to announce data reform bill in Queen's Speech to deliver 'Brexit dividend'" < such fun!

news.sky.com/story/governme… If anyone in govt has evidence that a change in data protection legislation will help meet an "urgent need to raise GDP" in any way other than a short-term burst in services to update org-level data policies - & cookie banners, lol - then I'd love to see their modelling...
May 4, 2022 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
Ah, health data trusts "independent of the NHS and industry" to "allow startup companies access to NHS data" "as a way of overcoming concerns about confidentiality and the use of private information"

theguardian.com/society/2022/m… Image Rather than "overcoming concerns" I think people meant to say "using a new legal structure to sidestep existing legal forms of governance that are intended to protect both patient's rights and delivery of NHS services"
Oct 10, 2020 • 10 tweets • 5 min read
Ah. Job ad for ONS' "Director of [UK] Integrated Government Data Programme [IGDP]".

Sponsored both by ONS, which is independent of Gov, & COO for civil service, who is not.

civilservicejobs.service.gov.uk/csr/jobs.cgi?j… << PDF here didn't work on my devices, one here did >> sandersonplc.com/ONS/ The job ad says responsible for both IGDP *&* for strategy to transform way data is managed, used & shared across govt.

The job pack says reporting to Deputy National Statistician. No mention of either the planned govt Chief Digital Officer or Chief Data Officer.
Sep 24, 2020 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
Status: listening to Tom O'Riordan, Leeds Council CEO, share what he learnt from working nationally with NHS test+trace I asked about data flows between the new app and local public health, I am *so* predictable.

Tom praises app, & privacy-preserving approach for contacts & check-in at places.

He agrees with Newham Council that central govt need to give local gov access to data collected by app
Sep 24, 2020 • 8 tweets • 2 min read
"The Government Digital Service truly was once world-beating. What happened?"

theguardian.com/society/2020/s…

Hmmmm.... There's lots in here that's right - there was some great work and lots of Whitehall pushback - but there are lots of omissions of where GDS got it wrong.
Sep 24, 2020 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
Update!

The steps from The App to discover what to do if risk level is high have been reduced by one, now 5 clicks, by addition of direct links to gov.uk local lockdown restriction pages on this FAQ page
faq.covid19.nhs.uk/article/KA-011… As the app has user's postcode area I suspect that humans that design computers could make it take a user straight to either the correct gov.uk page for their area or, better IMHO*, a local council page.

* better as local councils offer support as well as info
Sep 23, 2020 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
Status: listening to the thedatacity.com talk about their data products/services that help ppl understand UK businesses by matching UK gov open data with data/info that businesses share on their websites (economic stats folk note the new RTIC codes) The RTICs work is great.

AIUI Data City worked with UK central & local gov to understand priority future sectors (eg the nebulously defined "AI sector") that they wanted to understand and then sketched out sector boundaries
Sep 22, 2020 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
This is is such an obviously ‘wrong’ statistic :)

As a business you’ll share data – whether knowingly or not – with... Govt (company reg, taxes, payroll), suppliers (order volumes, delivery locations), customers (prices, data access requests), 3rd parties (auditors, accountants), industry research agencies & data brokers (stats, prices, websites, ‘alt data’)...just as examples. ImageImageImage
Sep 21, 2020 • 10 tweets • 3 min read
TIL: Facebook has turned my sister into an l33t hacker

One of my sisters is a Tai Chi teacher. They teach in several local parks, sports centres, old people's homes (all Coronavirus-secure, obvs).

One of the ways they get new customers is Facebook.

facebook.com/JianTaiji Image A couple of weeks ago Facebook nagged them that their Facebook page no longer linked to a website.

Strange.

As they have a website which has been linked to their Facebook page for several years.

jiantaiji.co.uk Image
Sep 21, 2020 • 7 tweets • 1 min read
"Julia Lopez speech at techUK’s ‘Building the Smarter State’ Conference"
gov.uk/government/spe… A mix of sensible things & joined up, frictionless technooptimism focussed on digital/online services delivered by central govt & used directly by unsupported citizens.
Sep 18, 2020 • 7 tweets • 3 min read
Ooh an update from the NHS digital contact tracing app

"Your area risk level has changed"

(It was announced 26 hours ago)

*clicks* Image "NE26 area risk level is HIGH"

*clicks* Image
Sep 17, 2020 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
The NIHP/Test+Trace evidence to UK Science+Technology is interesting all the way through.

For those particularly interested in The App (which is a chunk of my followers) that bit starts from 16:42ish

parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/52… English/Welsh contact tracing app trial evaluations to be published “as soon as possible after launch”

(It’s not clear why they can’t be published before launch, I assume the evaluation will be part of a launch decision)
Sep 17, 2020 • 4 tweets • 3 min read
vv yup vv

_continues to wait to find out if he can travel to see his parents tomorrow &/or if friends from NotTheNortheast will be able to visit next week_ *clicks refresh*

*scrolls down on North Tyneside bulletpoint page*

*scrolls down a bit more*

*heads to Newcastle council*

*clicks refresh*

my.northtyneside.gov.uk/page/26134/cor…

newcastle.gov.uk/services/publi…

gov.uk/government/col… ImageImageImage
Sep 17, 2020 • 9 tweets • 4 min read
Good to see UK government update its data ethics framework

(HT 50% of the data / tech ethics people in my timeline)

gov.uk/government/pub… Personally, I'm still looking for *public* transparency & evidence of how the last one is being used and what effect it's having.

It could be making things better or worse or having absolutely zero effect.

Heck knows ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

peterkwells.com/2019/06/16/ai-… Image
Sep 16, 2020 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
Status: listening to dgen (dgen.net/0/) briefing call on designing the UK's shared data infrastructure, including recommendations to National Data Strategy Image Miles Cheetham talking of need for consumer data right and how cross-sector consumer consent standard would/(could?) create informed consent for consumers & create a market for consumer consent services Image
Sep 9, 2020 • 13 tweets • 5 min read
Oh.

Unpicking the thinking driving the UK (except devolved stuff) national data strategy is going to take a bit of time... ImageImage At a top line there are statements saying that data use in normal times should be the same as those in a public health crisis...

There are reasons why public health crises are exceptional cases in legislation, it is because ppl face exceptional risks that of harm. Obvs. ImageImage
Sep 1, 2020 • 4 tweets • 3 min read
"28% of [English] pupils have limited access to IT at home"

Press release - Report highlights challenges facing schools and pupils in September 2020: nfer.ac.uk/news-events/pr…

Full report: nfer.ac.uk/schools-respon… ImageImageImageImage (Personal anecdata on challenges from teacher friends.

TF1: trying to deliver remote learning to primary school kids using personal smartphone from kitchen table in 1-bed flat
TF2: delivering remote learning while parents watch, & criticise, from off-camera)
Sep 1, 2020 • 8 tweets • 4 min read
I reckon _distributive_ ledgers must be some fancy new tech that shares the benefits of data equitably.
gov.uk/government/con… Image More seriously good to see UK Government continuing to dodge the single national digital ID (& card) bullet.

It would be a very expensive and non-functioning bullet, look at the reaction to digital contact tracing or exam algorithms to get a sense of public mood... Image
Aug 29, 2020 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
My brain can't process this article beyond the, journalist-written, intro paragraph talking about "outsourcing" the "rights and wrongs" of AI.

It's rare to see that attempt to absolve ppl of responsibility written so bluntly :)
wired.com/story/google-h… Image In the world of data/AI/tech ethics I've often had orgs asking for that service, or wanting to sell that service.

And I've often patiently explained that that is not how the world works & that trying to make it work that way leads to Bad Things
Aug 29, 2020 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
Windy Bay. Image Moody skies. Image
Aug 27, 2020 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
TIL: my area is trialling a new service for online doctor's consultations which, unlike some others in UK, would allow me to stay with my own doctor but see a different doctor employed by a different company for online consultation (& use another app?)

digitalhealth.net/2020/08/north-… Image I learnt it from the local telly news which had some supporting/opposing views around whether existing doctor's should be able to offer same service, impact on the continuity of care, and restates that all doctors will maintain the same records.

bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episod…