Time to stand by IT plans

That the first phase of the national system for sharing police intelligence has foundered is not good news: not for police forces, nor the IT industry, nor the British public.

But more worrying still is the whisper that the cancellation of the Cross Regional Information Sharing Project (Crisp) could be the first of many.

It is no secret that public sector spending is tightening. Under the current review to set departmental budgets from 2008-11, only defence is expected to see any significant increases.

And many police insiders greeted the news about Crisp with the rueful observation that, with money so tight, the ordering on the home secretary’s priority list becomes clear.

Setting aside the specifics of the Crisp decision, there is a danger that IT programmes – expensive, difficult and often unpopular – are looked on as a trouble-free place for cuts.

It is an easy argument. In the face of bankrupt hospitals, an accusing finger is pointed at the multibillion-pound National Programme for NHS IT. In the face of prisons bursting at the seams, it is pointed at the identity card scheme.

But it is also a lazy argument. Technology is no longer a desirable but gratuitous extra, like an after-dinner mint. It is now the main course, a fundamental part of every policy decision not least the modernisation of public services.

There is undoubtedly scope for a more thoughtful approach.

But if the changes to the police intelligence programme can – like the new-look ID scheme – end with a system that is both cheaper and swifter to implement, then they are to be supported.

If technology is simply seen as easy prey, the UK public sector will not benefit. The government now needs to hold its nerve, stick to its commitments and play a long-term game.