NHS Information Technology
Oral Answers to Questions — Health
House of Commons debates, 24 April 2007, 2:30 pm
Caroline Flint (Minister of State (Public Health), Department of Health; Don Valley, Labour)
We are delivering connecting for health on time and on budget—but perhaps the hon. Gentleman's question was written by Professor Ross Anderson, who is an independent adviser on IT to the Select Committee on Health. Among a number of suggestions for Conservative party policy, he proposed a fresh look at IT policy, suggesting that in each civil service department there should be a chief information officer at grade 1 and that
"the top 50 per cent. performers should expect a knighthood",
based on their IT advice. If that is the best advice that the Opposition can obtain for operating a modern Government using the modern technology necessary for our public services, so help them.