GDS to get a whopping £450m of additional funding - Spending Review 2015

So it looks like government hasn't given up hope on GDS or perhaps even Government-as-a-Platform

The Government Digital Service (GDS) is to get a whopping £450m in funding despite the overall Cabinet Office budget being cut by 26 per cent, Chancellor George Osborne revealed as part of the government's spending review today.

In his speech, Osborne said that the additional allocation of £450m over four years, would form part of the government's "digital revolution".

He said that this revolution would also include building "one of the most digital advanced tax administrations in the world".

This, he said, would mean that every individual and small business would have their own digital tax account by the end of the decade in order to manage their tax online.

GDS shock

In what was an unexpected announcement, Osborne revealed that GDS would be getting nearly twice as much per year (£112m) compared to the £58m it received last year. Most industry insiders would have been less surprised if GDS received less than £58m, as rumours were rife that the budget would shrink after its head Mike Bracken and other senior members left for the Co-Operative Group.

Other senior members of staff have continued to leave GDS, but the government's pledge to spend more on digital will come as a huge relief to Bracken's successor, Stephen Foreshew-Cain, in what has been a daunting task thus far - replacing Bracken who was admired by many who are still working within GDS and government. The extra money may also signal that Tim O'Reilly's vision of Government-as-a-Platform (GaaP) can still be realised as money was one of the determining factors.

However, while the amount of money GDS will receive shows that the government is not shifting its focus away from the service, it will be interesting to see how GDS will use the additional money going forward.

Last month, DVLA CTO Iain Patterson suggested that GDS was in need of a refresh.