Blockchain for Government and public services Sir Mark Walport FRS Chief Scientific Adviser to HM Government Franco – British Workshop 26 May 2016

Chief Scientific Adviser Health, wellbeing, resilience & security Science for economic advantage Scientific advice for emergencies Evidence for policy makers Science advocacy & leadership

Digital Government Collect curate and analyse data Provide evidence for decisions Deliver better public services Important for the economy Credit: Courtesy of the researchers/MIT

Bringing evidence from outside government into policy making Blackett Review Expert panel Ten case and use-case studies Eight recommendations

Distributed Ledgers Blockchain algorithm used to underpin Bitcoin in 2008… Technology now goes beyond digital-currencies…

Distributed Ledger Technology A database that can be shared across a network of multiple sites New ways to record and verify information and transactions An immutable record of all transactions in a network

Potential Applications Protecting critical infrastructure Supply chain Transparency Medical Records Smart Contracts Copyright and IPR Internet of Things

Changing the way government does business Disruptive technology that could transform: public service delivery boost productivity through multiple applications relationship between government and the citizen

UK Government Response Ministerial leadership from Matthew Hancock and Ed Vaizey A cross-Whitehall community of Interest has been established Departments are looking at proof of concept trials £10m funding for research

Conclusions Distributed Ledger Technology is in its infancy but already showing great promise The UK Government can play a leading role in trialling innovative applications The challenge for Government is to identify the most feasible and interesting opportunities to test this emerging technology

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