The ministry of data

Digital industries got their own government minister in the reshuffle as privacy, patent and copyright rules remain contentious.

Following a previous government reshuffle, Conservative MP Ed Vaizey found himself being briefed by a civil servant and discovered that his role involved rather more responsibilities for trade than he had thought. Just as he was starting to form plans to use his unexpected responsibility, in walked Liberal Democrat MP Ed Davey – and Ed Vaizey’s plans evaporated. It transpired the civil servant had mistakenly briefed the wrong man.

In this latest reshuffle, there was no mistake about his role as the newly created minister for digital industries. The new brief came with a promotion to minister of state level, confounding tips – for the time being at least – that he would make it to the cabinet as culture secretary.

Vaizey will find many external pressure groups and companies putting pressure on him

Unusually for a reshuffle move, Vaizey’s new job is one for which he has plenty of relevant experience in government, for his previous role as minister for culture, communications and creative industries often meant worrying about digital issues too. He was in the firing line from digital rights campaigners over the government’s plans for more widespread filtering of web content and he became a vocal supporter of the gaming industry (he became a born-again gamer years after he stopped playing arcade games).

He will also have a greater freedom than many other Conservative ministers because he does not have an obvious Liberal Democrat shadow in government. He will have the expert backbench Lib Dem MP Julian Huppert closely scrutinising much of what he does, but within government he will not find similar levels of expertise or interest from Lib Dem ministers.

Vaizey will, however, find many external pressure groups and companies pursuing their own numerous and varied demands. His skill at keeping the arts lobby – a group not normally well disposed towards Conservatives – mostly happy, despite large budget cuts, makes him a good fit for the role.

He takes up the position at a delicate time for the digital industries. Arguments over privacy and the role of state snooping are now regularly leading the news bulletins. Meanwhile, patent and copyright rules – both their content and their implementation – continue to cause controversy, and the approaching general election means many rural MPs are all the keener to see substantial progress on spreading high-speed internet connections beyond the easy to service areas.

All these and many others will effect the digital industries, which will keep the new minister very busy even in the relatively short period he has to make an impact before the run-up to the general election sees government effectively hit the pause button.