Policy paper

Greening government: ICT and digital services strategy 2020-2025

Published 10 September 2020

Commendation by the Senior Responsible Owner

ICT and digital services are increasingly held up as a key component of any solution to the global climate crisis and associated targets and goals. These include the UK government’s commitment to net zero carbon by 2050, the Greening Government Commitments 2020-2025, The UN Sustainable Development Goals and the 25 Year Environment Plan. We have shown recently how ICT and digital services can enable our civil and public servants working from home, increasing resilience during an international crisis.

As documented in our annual reports since 2012, we have migrated large portions of our ICT infrastructure from our estates to our service providers. While this is clearly best practice, and we have been able to show a reduction in our carbon footprint, our footprint and associated impact have effectively been off-shored. A full carbon footprint of our ICT services was required. To tackle this, we published our HMG (Her Majesty’s Government) Sustainable Technology Strategy 2018-2020 and have spent the last 2 years working with industry to publish as accurate figures as possible. This provides our new baseline for 2020-2025.

There remain opportunities across the government estate to deliver energy saving benefits, especially in server utilisation and software design. Some departments still have large ICT hosting infrastructures on their estates and would benefit from further advice and guidance around potential environmental benefits of moving to collocated data centres or true cloud. There is also industry pressure to migrate.

The true sustainability impact of digital is still not fully understood or published. Issues remain around a lack of transparency from providers in specific areas relating to the services consumed. There is also room for improvement in the skills of procurement teams to include sustainability criteria and a general a lack of understanding on the responsibilities of all end users. There are of course commercial reasons for this, but we need to work together to meet these challenges. To do what we can to avoid and be resilient against a potential climate breakdown and other challenges, we need to better understand our supply chains and the risks placed upon them.

Central to our new strategy is the role of the responsible digital citizens. All government employees have a role to play, not just those of us charged with the delivery and adoption of digital services. Working is something that we all do. It is not simply a place. We think and we do, and we need the tools and capability to do this whenever and wherever, the global pandemic has shown us how important this is. As many of us have been enabled to operate remotely we have witnessed huge reductions in carbon and air pollution while use in ICT and digital services have increased.

The trajectory for global warming is well documented and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change special report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C from October 2018 states that “climate-related risks to health, livelihoods, food security, water supply, human security, and economic growth are projected to increase with global warming of 1.5°C and increase further with 2°C.”

Business as usual is no longer an option. It is therefore vital that HMG digital services and ICT are responsible and resilient.

Please take the time required to read and absorb this strategy, embedding its principles into your department, agency or body policies, strategies and guidance. Together, with colleagues from across government, the public sector, our industry suppliers and beyond we can deliver real and meaningful change. Together, we can ensure our responsible and resilient ICT and digital services deliver measurable and tangible sustainable outcomes.

Chris Howes, Chief Digital Information Officer, Defra

Demand

This section defines the business need and outcomes.

Vision

As a global leader in sustainable ICT, HMG will ensure that our digital infrastructure and associated supply chains are rationalised, responsible, resilient and free of slavery/exploitation, creating environmental, economic and social benefits for all.

Purpose and applicability

This strategy defines how, working together, we can provide responsible and resilient digital services and ICT to all our end users and customers across:

• government departments, agencies and bodies
• public sector
• industry
• professional and technical bodies
• academia
• charities

ICT and digital are increasingly being championed as part of the solution for the global climate crisis but there is a risk that the impact of ICT and digital services are also part of the problem. As a global leader in ICT and digital services, we can ill-afford not to implement gold standards when delivering to our end users.

We have been conducting annual reporting since 2012 and have provided evidence to support targets such as:

• the Greening Government Commitments (GGC)
• the UN Sustainable Development Goals
• net zero

However, we have also reported evidence gaps in:

• the supply chains
• our ICT footprint from the services we consume
• waste tracking
• sustainable procurement

With increased scrutiny on digital and ICT services, HMG needs to be ready with the evidence that we are doing the right thing. To increase accountability, sustainable ICT reporting is now embedded within the mandatory HMG Annual Reports and Accounting (ARA) process and the 2020-2025 GGC reporting processes from 2020.

Our ICT and digital services need to show, holistically, that they are providing a net gain, or benefit, as part of the way the HMG delivers its services and governs.

Scope

The scope of this strategy directly mirrors that of the GGC. Therefore, Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) and Non-Ministerial Departments (NMDs) in the UK are included in the scope. It does not apply to the estates and operations of the devolved administrations, their Executive Agencies and related bodies. All organisations which reported under the 2018-2020 targets are within scope for reporting against the key outcomes, as are Arm’s Length Bodies (ALBs) unless specifically exempted. The exemption process is managed through the GGC.

Outcomes

The delivery of this strategy provides the following outcomes.

1. Reduced carbon and cost

Sustainability is central to the procurement, design and management of digital services and ICT to reduce costs and carbon. Wherever possible, waste is removed from the system, for example redundant services, duplicate files, legacy ICT systems and hardware, promoting shared systems and services across HMG.

2. Increased resilience

HMG is buying smarter through the adoption of the gold standards, tools, guides, training and resources set out within this strategy. Mapping and tracing of service supply chains is actively monitored, throughout life-cycles, to manage ICT risk across all 3 sustainability pillars.

3. Increased responsibility (doing the right thing)

Across the Civil Service and beyond, the message of the responsible digital citizen is embedded, measured through a user survey. All end users help deliver the strategy targets and objectives through improved behaviours. Key digital data and technology (DDaT) roles ensure sustainability is a key component of design, delivery and implementation as well as evaluation scores in procurement exercises.

4. Increased transparency and collaboration

The information and data required to report progress towards net zero and other key sustainability commitments is available and openly published. All participant departments, agencies, bodies, government suppliers and delivery partners adopt new technology, increase commonality of approach and establish trusted mechanisms to meet sustainability goals and assess and respond to supply chain issues.

5. Increased accountability

Visibility of sustainable ICT performance is increased across government at ministerial level and externally. Working in partnership with the GGC and Annual Reports and Accounting (ARA) process, HMG provide a whole life, circular view of ICT and digital services, providing evidence to support audits nationally and internationally.

The UN Sustainable Development Goals

We have mapped our outcomes for 2020 and 2025 to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These are the SDGs we are acting on right now. Working towards 2025 we add in a further 5 (6,8,10,11 and 15) with the remainder being areas we are seeking to assist and influence. In broad terms the way we will help meet each of these goals is set out in the “we’ll help meet” statements, as well as throughout this strategy.

Goal 7 – Sustainable energy for all

We’ll help meet this through procurement activities, for instance renewably powered cloud. Captured in our annual reporting and delivered through our targets and guides.

Goal 9 – Resilient infrastructure

We’ll help meet this through promoting transparency, accountability and responsibility, producing guides to manage risks and reporting social impacts.

Goal 12 – Sustainable consumption and production

We’ll help meet this through hard targets on ICT reuse, landfill and remanufacturing. Producing standards/guides on efficiency, circular economy and social procurement.

Goal 13 – Climate adaptation

We’ll help meet this through partnering with suppliers to manage resilience, using data for sustainable outcomes, using innovation for benefits.

Goal 17 – Partnerships

We’ll help meet this through the technology sector working together across government, and using environmentally sound technologies.

Business rules

These minimum business rules, developed in consultation with the tech industry, drive and underpin this strategy and are provided to add clarity. The minimum 2020 standards are to be applied to all new procurements from the launch of this strategy. We will work with colleagues from across government policy teams, and the Cabinet Office, to place these across procurement guidance and policy where they can be most effective. The stretch targets for 2025 have been developed to aide ambition. Progress towards these will be reported on an annual basis.

Business rule 1: To meet net zero by 2050 (or sooner)

2020: All ICT suppliers commit to science-based net zero targets in line with the Paris Agreement (or procuring department target, whichever is sooner) and have developed carbon mitigation and adaptation strategies.

2025: All ICT suppliers follow up the commitment they made to becoming net zero with a road map and action plan, showing proven progress towards the goals. Seeking a carbon positive/net gain/net positive outcome through the services provided.

Business rule 2: Circular economy – resources and waste strategy

2020: HMG estates deliver 0% to landfill with an annual increase in reuse and materials recycled. All suppliers have circular ICT policies and strategies and products are routinely designed for durability, ease of maintenance and recycling. Problematic materials and substances have, or are being, phased out of use.

2025: HMG suppliers have established zero waste to landfill or zero-waste targets. Suppliers are meeting targets to incorporate more recycled materials in their products and eliminate the use of single use plastics. There’s a yearly increase in ICT kit purchased/leased that is remanufactured/refurbished.

Business rule 3: To meet transparency and accountability commitments

2020: Supply chain data on carbon, environmental impacts, materials, chemicals, and wider business responsibilities are regularly harvested and analysed from tier 1 and tier 2 suppliers. For instance, blockchain is used to trace raw materials and digitise product information (digital labels, tags, watermarks, passports) thereby providing easily accessible supply chain and product information. HMG purchases only from suppliers that comply with the UK Modern Slavery Act and use of the Home Office’s Modern Slavery Assessment Tool (MSAT).

2025: Suppliers help HMG map supply chains to identify high risk areas, and focussed mitigation work on those categories/supplier partners is in place. Common international reporting frameworks and standards are used with data being monitored in real time (open data standard) to measure and map key performance indicators. Reporting established for management and awareness of resilience from climate and ecological breakdown.

Control

This section defines the objectives, governance and metrics.

Objectives

The objectives are linked directly to the outcomes. A full flow of the business rules, outcomes and objectives is provided within Appendix B.

1. Reduced carbon and cost

1.1 Only procure with suppliers who have committed to or are the process of setting science-based targets that match departmental sustainability outcomes.

1.2 Publish a reduced ICT carbon and ecological footprint, based on the services consumed, on estates and with suppliers, encompassing embodied/embedded carbon.

1.3 ICT and digital services are designed with sustainability in mind and through adherence to the Technology Code of Practice.

2. Increased resilience

2.1 Embed gold standard procurement criteria removing modern slavery and socially negative activities from ICT supply chains.

2.2 Map and monitor the supply chain data for the ICT systems and services used by departments and across HMG.

2.3 Stress and scenario test ICT supply chains to increase preparedness to ecological and climate breakdown.

3. Increased responsibility

3.1 Increase awareness/impact of the role of the responsible digital citizen through delivery of training and education.

3.2 Embed sustainable ICT principles within key roles and deliverables across government.

3.3 Embed sustainable ICT principles within departmental/agency/body policy and strategy.

4. Increased transparency

4.1 Publish an accurate ICT footprint based on the services consumed, on estates and with suppliers, encompassing embodied/embedded carbon.

4.2 Map and account for all ICT at end of life.

4.3 Establish, operate and participate in an HMG sustainability supplier steering group.

5. Increased accountability

5.1 Report an annual percentage improvement in the procurement of remanufactured/refurbished ICT promoting multiple usage lifecycles.

5.2 Report ICT figures within GGC and ARA processes (and successors in cross-government sustainability reporting).

Roles and responsibilities in a digital ecosystem

With sustainability embedded within the Technology Code of Practice (TCoP) as well as HMG policy and strategy departments/agencies and arm’s length bodies must ensure they meet the defined outcomes. Adherence to established design best practice achieves good outcomes. However, to fully apply the sustainability lens, there are key roles and responsibilities, in addition to any governance and control described. The 4 areas and outline responsibilities are defined as follows.

1. Service designers

Not confined to those in a specific service design role, but those roles that help define and decide exactly what shape, size and impact a new ICT/digital service or solution will have. These could include architects, business analysts, strategists, safety and environmental engineers who would:

• complete sustainability assessments
• define architecture principles
• assess potential suppliers
• define minimum standards
• define key performance indicators (KPIs)
• define and set contracts
• produce whole life costs and assessments
• assess and establish user requirements

2. Service providers

Any delivery partner or company providing a service wholly or in part to the authority. We require as a minimum:

• commitment to transparency
• alignment to the principle, outcomes and business rules
• collaborative working with the department/agency/body on meeting defined sustainability goals
• service-based reporting, such as carbon

3. Service owners

Not wholly for those just in service performance, management or ownership roles, but anyone involved in data collection and supplier management who deliver:

• risk management
• issue management
• management reporting/KPIs
• continual service improvement
• performance reviews
• audit
• escalations
• holding to account
• relationship management

4. Responsible digital citizens

All government employees are encouraged to think about the following:

• data management – think about what you keep and where you keep it
• single best-suited device – is there a single device that could replace your desktop, laptop, tablet and phone?
• remove duplication – delete old and additional copies and maintain a single file store
• use power settings – turn off and reduce power setting where possible
• adopt digital preferences first – ‘think before you print’ and use online meetings over travel
• digital detox – rationalise your apps and screen time where possible

Governance

The top-level governance informs alignment with the GGC and wider government sustainability reporting. In greater detail, the following roles and responsibilities ensure the delivery of this strategy:

• sponsor – Defra Permanent Secretary - provides resources and support for the work, enabling success
• project team – the Sustainable Technology Advice and Reporting (STAR) team - manages the virtual team, author and delivers the strategy and annual reporting
• top-level governance – Technology and Digital Leaders Network (TDLN) – GDS chairs the group and the STAR present progress to the TDLN on a bi-annual basis. All reports and strategies are signed off by the TDLN
• Defra Senior Responsible Officer (Defra Chief Digital Information Officer - CDIO) – accountable for ensuring a STAR meets its objectives, delivers the projected outcomes and realises the required benefits. Owns the policy/strategy
• chair – HMG sustainable technology lead from Defra
• secretariat – MOD - sustainable ICT strategy lead
• core membership – all central government departments, sustainable ICT strategy/architecture leads. They act as umbrellas for supporting ALBs, agencies and NDPBs
• additional membership – public sector, professional bodies, educations, tech bodies, charities
• stakeholders – NGOs, wider industry

Business capabilities

The STAR team are both a community, a resource and a mechanism to implement sustainability principles across the DDaT function and beyond. The TDLN nominates suitably empowered and skilled membership.

STAR Strategy Group

The STAR Strategy Group meets quarterly, with membership from each ministerial department and beyond. With skills from across the DDaT framework, the group develops and updates policy, materials and guidance. The group designs and implements annual reporting and provides an initial level of sign off. It also ensures departments adhere to their strategy statements the strategy group reports into the TLDN and also to the Defra Permanent Secretary through the Senior Responsible Officer (SRO), Defra CDIO.

STAR Reporting Group

Twice a year the Strategy Group expands to include those actively involved in the annual reporting. These will include service/supplier managers, business teams and estates and facilities managers. This group manages and delivers annual reporting on footprint, waste and best practices and any extra reporting and requirements as developed by the strategy group.

STAR Supplier Group

A regular, meaningful forum for engagement with industry across HMG. Members include Crown Commercial Services and senior leaders who may have crown representative roles. To meet the objectives for a single data ‘ask’, improved transparency and risk and opportunity management from suppliers on behalf of government, where possible, will encourage and improve cross government supplier relationships.

STAR sub-working groups

STAR sub-working groups are chaired by policy leads from individual departments, or by the STAR chair. Examples of current sub-working groups are:

• communications – to manage and develop communications, produce videos, events, lectures, talks, social media. Also, to manage and deliver the user survey
• cloud – development of cloud procurement tools
• modern slavery and social value
• net gain
• data management
• government buying standards update
• circular economy and design
• GDS TCoP sustainability guide

Supply

This section defines the services to be delivered to meet the outcomes.

Principle

All ICT services (newly installed, when modified and when decommissioned) will comply with this principle and the outcomes, objectives and business rules that support it. Teams will need to enact this principle across ICT and digital services delivery such as service design architecture, service performance and supply, business, finance and commercial teams.

The principle is: HMG will sustainably design, develop and use ICT and digital services.

To ensure delivery, the Technology Code of Practice has been updated to include a new point specifically for sustainability. Compliance with this strategy is required through the spend controls process.

The STAR Centre of Excellence

The STAR team are both a community, a resource and a mechanism to implement sustainability principles across the DDaT function and beyond. Projects and programmes are encouraged to contact the STAR either directly or via their departmental representative to aid the implementation of sustainability within their deliverables. A summary of the services the STAR provides is covered in Appendix A.

Guides

We will produce standard form guides for each of the topics and sub topics listed in this section. We will publish and update these throughout the life of this strategy on GOV.UK. This list is not exhaustive but is provided as a reference. The guides outputs will link directly to the business rules and objectives and will define how each department, body or agency reports progress. Each guide is produced by the group of subject matter experts from across HMG policy, commercial and DDaT teams.

The guides follow this format:

• heading
• definition - a fuller view of the topic in simple terms
• related policy and strategy - links to publications such as the 25YEP, resource and waste strategy
• 2020 business rule - a starting point
• 2025 stretch target business rule - a stretch target
• best practices - a list of best practices
• measurement - how to measure progress for the annual reporting
• tools and techniques - the tools and techniques to do the measuring
• example requirements - gold standard questions for Invitation To Tender (ITT) and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire (PQQ) call off frameworks
• references - for example, academic references, research

The list of guides and outline contents is as follows.

1. ICT circular economy

Outline contents:

• design for circular economy
• buying second life, remanufactured equipment
• a mechanism and options for the end of the usage cycle
• remanufacturing/refurbishment policy updates
• reverse logistics

2. Net zero and net gain

Outline contents:

• tools to track and report emissions/carbon/environmental impact
• tools to track embodied emissions/carbon/environmental impact
• offsetting guidance
• benefits
• HMT Green Book – monetising environmental and social benefits

3. Climate resilience

Outline contents:

• guidance on how we engage with tech service providers to help with resilience to climate breakdown
• engagement with industry and other key stakeholders
• policy and guidance for new contracts

4. Cloud and data hosting

Outline contents:

• procurement options tool and model
• supplier management KPIs
• consumption tools and mechanisms
• advice on regions

5. Transparency in the supply chain

Outline contents:

• setting out minimum standards for social value and modern slavery as ICT is a high-risk area
• specific topics and key issues (including ethics)
• tools and guidance to aide mapping
• modern slavery

6. Data

Outline contents:

• model design
• retention
• FAIR
• open data standard

Education materials and networks

To reinforce the idea of the responsible digital citizen, we have created a self-led training programme on the topic of sustainable technology. Throughout the lifespan of this strategy we will develop and enhance this, and other supporting materials, as well as continuing our input to cross government programmes such as:

• OneGreenGov
• the Cross Whitehall Sustainability Group
• Defra e-Sustainability Network
• MOD Sustainable Procurement Working Group and equivalents across government

Externally we have and will continue to support sustainability initiatives, conferences, webinars and other opportunities to liaise and enhance knowledge on this topic.

Gold standards

Gold standards for sustainable ICT and digital services have been developed and will be continually updated and improved. These are shared and adopted across government. We urgently seek improvement of the government buying standards for ICT as a key opportunity to implement and standardise a number of key policy drivers.

Collaboration

In addition to STAR membership from each ministerial department, supporting agency and body, the STAR welcomes representation from enabling functions across government. These include Crown Commercial Services and the Government Property Unit, as well as the wider public sector such as the NHS and county councils. Our membership is also aided with regular input from industry (through Tech UK and others), academia and professional bodies such as the Institute for Environmental Management and Assessment and the British Computer Society.

Commercial arrangements and finance

The STAR (and its predecessor, the Green ICT Delivery Unit) have developed and shared best practice for many years. Examples include gold standard commercial contracts, ITT and PQQ examples, and tools and techniques to quantify benefits and assist whole life costing. The annual reports published on GOV.UK have demonstrated quantified savings and efficiencies during this period as part of efficiency reform. We also feed into CCS frameworks and wider policy. We will continue this work.

Publications

Progress will be reported annually through GOV.UK. The STAR report will collate data from the GGC and ARA and additional reporting set out within the departmental strategy statements. This will provide a full picture of the impact and opportunities around ICT and digital services to meet UK and Internal sustainability objectives and goals. We will endeavour to share, and make public as much data as possible.

Risks and issues

1. Visibility

The strategy requires increased visibility within the TCoP, managed and owned by Government Digital Services. Lack of awareness will drive avoidance of the principles and standards set out within and therefore increase risk to the resilience of the services designed and procured across government.

2. Transparency

Currently, opportunity to access service specific sustainability information such as footprint, waste, or supply chain matters from suppliers are limited. This is due to legitimate technological or commercial reasons. However, in order to ensure digital ICT is part of the climate solution and not part of the problem we need to work with industry to manage and evolve this situation.

3. Resources

The topic of sustainable technology remains niche and requires more direct attention and resources to manage associated risks and maximise potential benefits from ICT. Government can no longer assume that the roll out of a digital service of new ICT will automatically deliver a benefit (‘greener by default’).

4. Alliance

HMG needs a single cohesive voice on this key topic. Different messages to suppliers and stakeholder cause confusion and delay which we can ill afford in a time of crisis.

5. Compliance

It is often not feasible to define exclusive supply chains for specific products or services. Flexible, agile procurements are needed, especially in times of crisis. Awareness that increased compliance adds complexity and cost is required but doesn’t diminish the responsibility in doing so.

Summary of departmental/agency/body actions

1. Deployment and continual development of the policy, principles, tools and guides outlined within this strategy, including integration into internal policy and strategy.

2. Provision and commitment of at least one suitable skilled and empowered resource to join the STAR virtual team, as identified through the TDLN.

3. Participation in quarterly meetings/working groups and sub-working groups as required.

4. Completion of annual reporting core areas (carbon/energy footprint and ICT waste).

5. Completion of a strategy statement identifying further areas of annual reporting and commitments defined by the department/agency/body, signed by the TDLN member.

6. Increase collaboration and partnerships with suppliers and professional bodies on a cross-government basis where possible.

7. Promote training and education materials, on the importance of sustainability within ICT and digital services across DDaT functions and all end users.

8. Commitment to meet the outcomes, objectives and measures identified in the strategy.

Summary of STAR actions

As the centre of excellence for delivering sustainable ICT we will:

1. Conduct HMG annual reporting and publish on GOV.UK.

2. Co-ordinate, author and publish guides on key topics to aide measurement and reporting.

3. Provide tools and policy to meet the objectives.

4. Increase visibility within HMG procurement mechanisms. policy and guidance.

5. Develop and build relationships with the supplier community on a cross government basis.

6. Seek standardisation in procurement and measurement including a single data ‘ask’ from suppliers.

7. Develop training and education materials on the role of the responsible digital citizen.

8. Continue to build on cross-government relationships through the STAR virtual team.

Sustainable ICT and digital services strategy: targets for 2020-2025 policy paper

Reduce our greenhouse gas emissions

1. Reduce greenhouse gas emissions towards net zero targets immediately for new suppliers/services of digital/ICT, using science-based targets.

1a. Existing suppliers work with HMG to meet legally binding, or existing/emerging departmental targets.

1b. Use technology/digital first as the key policy driver to reduce travel/energy and waste.

Improve our management of resources and waste

2. From 2020 baseline, reduce the amount of ICT waste going to landfill to 0%.

3. From 2020 baseline, continue to improve our waste management by reducing the overall amount of waste generated and increasing the proportion which is reused and recycled.

3a. A yearly increase in the procurement of remanufactured ICT devices in £/volume

3b. A yearly increase in the amount of ICT that is reused and materials recycled.

Procuring sustainable technology and digital services

4. Continue to buy more sustainable and efficient products and services with the aim of achieving the best long-term, overall value for money for society.

4a. 100% traceability of ICT at end of life (mapping).

4b. Carbon footprint of the services we are consuming.

4c. 100% compliance with the Social Value Framework, MSAT and transparency in supply chains.

Sustainability statements

5. All departments will provide strategy statements approved by technology and digital leaders. These will set out how they will use technology and digital services to help implement the 25 Year Environment Plan, the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the outcomes defined in this strategy.

Appendix A – strategy deliverables

We have: defined procurement principles and standards. These are (in summary):

• 100% renewable energy and/or carbon neutral suppliers
• 0% to landfill and an annual increase in reuse and material recycling
• increased transparency across HMG, suppliers and the supply chain
• 100% traceability of ICT at end of life
• a yearly increase in procured ICT and services that is remanufactured/refurbished

We will: publish guides on key topics – what good looks like and how to do it - on topics such as:

• inclusion within the TCoP
• circular economy
• supply chains - modern slavery and critical materials
• cloud and hosting procurement – the cloud toolkit
• data management
• training and education for the responsible digital citizen

We will: publish tools to help departments calculate impacts and benefits. These include:

• net gain tool (calculating ICT benefits)
• resources footprint tool
• sustainability assessment (identifying and managing material benefits and risks)

We are: publishing annual reporting, tracking progress against KPIs and providing case studies. Departments:

• develop a strategy statement
• report progress and performance against strategy statements
• provide baseline reporting on footprint and end of life ICT
• gather data from GGC and ARA reporting
• provide case studies

Appendix B – strategy summary

This summary is provided to aide workable implementation of the strategy within departments, bodies and agencies.

1. Apply the business rules

2. Implement and report on the objectives

Business rules

These minimum business rules, developed in consultation with the tech industry, drive and underpin this strategy. The minimum 2020 standards are to be applied to all new procurements from the launch of this strategy. We will work with colleagues from across government policy teams, and the Cabinet Office, to place these across procurement guidance and policy where they can be most effective. The stretch targets for 2025 have been developed to aide ambition. Progress towards these will be reported on an annual basis.

Business rule 1: to meet net zero by 2050 (or sooner)

2020: All ICT suppliers commit to science-based net zero targets in line with the Paris Agreement (or procuring department target, whichever is sooner) and have developed carbon mitigation and adaptation strategies.

2025: All ICT suppliers follow up the commitment they made to becoming net zero with a road map and action plan, showing proven progress towards the goals. Seeking a carbon positive/net gain/net positive outcome through the services provided.

Business rule 2: circular economy – resources and waste strategy

2020: HMG estates deliver 0% to landfill with an annual increase in reuse and materials recycled. All suppliers have circular ICT policies and strategies and products are routinely designed for durability, ease of maintenance and recycling. Problematic materials and substances have, or are being, phased out of use.

2025: HMG suppliers have established zero waste to landfill or zero-waste targets. Suppliers are meeting targets to incorporate more recycled materials in their products and eliminate the use of single use plastics. There’s a yearly increase in ICT kit purchased/leased that is remanufactured/refurbished.

Business rule 3: to meet transparency and accountability commitments

2020: Supply chain data on carbon, environmental impacts, materials, chemicals, and wider business responsibilities are regularly harvested and analysed from tier 1 and tier 2 suppliers. Use technology to increase transparency. For instance, blockchain is used to trace raw materials and digitise product information (digital labels, tags, watermarks, passports) thereby providing easily accessible supply chain and product information. HMG purchase only from suppliers that comply with the UK Modern Slavery Act and use of the Home Office’s MSAT.

2025: Suppliers help HMG map supply chains to identify high risk areas and focussed mitigation work on those categories/supplier partners is in place. Common international reporting frameworks and standards are used with data being monitored in real time (open data standard) to measure and map key performance indicators. Reporting established for management and awareness of resilience from climate and ecological breakdown.

Outcomes and objectives

Activity is required outside of the procurement space and across HMG, including the role of every end users. These outcomes and objectives help deliver our vision.

1. Reduced carbon and cost

Sustainability is central to the procurement, design and management of digital services and ICT to reduce costs and carbon. Wherever possible, waste is removed from the system - for example, redundant services, duplicate files, legacy ICT systems and hardware, promoting shared systems and services across HMG.

Objectives

1.1 Only procure with suppliers who have committed to or are the process of setting science-based targets that match departmental sustainability outcomes.

1.2 Publish a reduced ICT carbon and ecological footprint, based on the services consumed, on estates and with suppliers, encompassing embodied/embedded carbon.

1.3 ICT and digital services are designed with sustainability in mind and through adherence to the TCoP.

2. Increased resilience

HMG is buying smarter through the adoption of the gold standards, tools, guides, training and resources set out within this strategy. Mapping and tracing of service supply chains is actively monitored, throughout life-cycles, to manage ICT risk across all 3 sustainability pillars.

Objectives

2.1 Embed gold standard procurement criteria removing modern slavery and socially negative activities from ICT supply chains.

2.2 Map and monitor the supply chain data for the ICT systems and services utilised by departments and across HMG.

2.3 Stress and scenario test ICT supply chains to increase preparedness to ecological and climate breakdown.

3. Increased responsibly – doing the right thing

Across the Civil Service and beyond, the message of the responsible digital citizen is embedded, measured through a user survey. All end users help deliver the strategy targets and objectives through improved behaviours. Key DDaT roles ensure sustainability is a key component of design, delivery and implementation as well as evaluation scores in procurement exercises.

Objectives

3.1 Increase awareness/impact of the role of the responsible digital citizen through delivery of training and education.

3.2 Embed sustainable ICT principles within key roles and deliverables across government.

3.3 Embed sustainable ICT principles within departmental/agency/body policy and strategy.

4. Increased transparency and collaboration

The information and data required to report progress towards net zero and other key sustainability commitments is available and openly published. All participant departments, agencies, bodies, government suppliers and delivery partners adopt new technology, increase commonality of approach and establish trusted mechanisms to meet sustainability goals and assess and respond to supply chain issues.

Objectives

4.1 Publish an accurate ICT footprint based on the services consumed, on estates and with suppliers, encompassing embodied/embedded carbon.

4.2 Map and account for all ICT at end of life.

4.3 Establish, operate and participate in an HMG sustainability supplier steering group.

5. Increased accountability

Visibility of sustainable ICT performance is increased across government at ministerial level and externally. Working in partnership with the GCG and ARA process, HMG provides a whole life, circular view of ICT and digital services providing evidence to support audits nationally and internationally.

Objectives

5.1 Report an annual percentage improvement in the procurement of remanufactured/refurbished ICT promoting multiple usage lifecycles.

5.2 Report ICT figures within GGC and ARA processes (and successors in cross-government sustainability reporting).