McPartland Review - Driving Economic Growth through Cyber Security

8 Feb 2024 01:34 PM

On 6 February 2024, the government appointed the Rt Hon Stephen McPartland MP to lead an independent review into cyber security’s role as an enabler of economic growth.

McPartland, previously served as Minister of State for Security under Johnson’s premiership, will collaborate with the National Cyber Advisory Board (NCAB) to understand the economic drivers that can reduce the cost of implementing cyber security across all sectors of the economy.

This review aligns with the government’s National Cyber Strategy, which advocates for a whole society approach to protect and promote the UK’s cyber interests. Its objectives include:

• Empowering businesses to accelerate digitisation while building secure environments. The review aims to compile evidence that supports investment in cyber security, highlighting instances where cyber security has driven market differentiation and innovation, and will explore avenues for further economic gains.
• Enhancing support for UK businesses in adopting robust cyber security practices. It will examine various challenges faced by businesses.
• Promoting greater awareness, accountability, and recognition of the benefits of cyber security through transparency measures. Special emphasis will be placed on leveraging generated information for pricing insurance risk to enable businesses to better direct cyber security investments.
• Minimising costs for businesses and consumers by demonstrating how security investments can stimulate growth.
• Facilitating market access for UK businesses through the mutual recognition of domestic standards on the global stage.

To gather evidence, McPartland will engage with stakeholders from across the public sector, industry and experts. The reports terms of reference can be found here.

A report with recommendations will be presented to the Deputy Prime Minister and the DSIT Secretary of State by the 1st of May 2024.