The UK Government has announced a new Cyber Action Plan designed to address escalating cyber threats and strengthen digital resilience across public services. Backed by more than £210 million in funding, the plan sets out a coordinated approach to protecting government systems, data, and supply chains at a time when public sector digital transformation is accelerating.
Central to the plan is the creation of a new Government Cyber Unit, tasked with improving cyber security and digital resilience across departments and the wider public sector. The initiative supports the government’s ambition to digitise public services, enabling citizens to access services online more efficiently, reduce reliance on phone-based processes, and avoid repeatedly submitting the same information across departments. Effective use of digital technologies could unlock up to £45 billion in productivity savings across the public sector, but the government has acknowledged that these benefits depend on public trust in secure systems.
Cyber security risks to public services remain significant. A successful cyber attack can disrupt essential services within minutes, affecting healthcare, utilities, transport, and local authority operations. For sectors such as digital construction, where government clients increasingly rely on connected data environments, building information modelling, and digital twins, the resilience of public sector systems and supply chains is critical.
The Cyber Action Plan was released alongside the second reading of the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill in the House of Commons. The Bill establishes clearer expectations for organisations providing services to government, including those operating across energy, water, healthcare, data centres, and construction supply chains. By strengthening cyber resilience requirements throughout these ecosystems, the government aims to reduce systemic vulnerabilities that could affect critical national infrastructure.
Four core outcomes
The plan focuses on four core outcomes. First, it will provide clearer visibility of cyber and digital resilience risks across government, allowing resources to be targeted where they are most needed. Second, it introduces stronger central coordination to address severe and complex cyber risks that cannot be managed by individual organisations alone. Third, it mandates faster responses to cyber incidents by requiring robust incident response arrangements across departments. Finally, it seeks to raise resilience standards across government by closing major gaps that expose critical services to disruption.
Digital Government Minister Ian Murray said: “Cyber-attacks can take vital public services offline in minutes, disrupting our digital services and our very way of life. This plan sets a new bar to bolster the defences of our public sector, putting cyber-criminals on warning that we are going further and faster to protect the UK’s businesses and public services alike. This is how we keep people safe, services running, and build a government the public can trust in the digital age.”
A key component of the plan is the launch of a Software Security Ambassador Scheme, which will promote adoption of the Software Security Code of Practice. Software underpins modern public services and construction delivery platforms, yet software supply chain attacks affected 59 per cent of organisations in the past year. Embedding baseline software security practices across the market is intended to reduce disruption and improve resilience.
Major organisations including Cisco, Palo Alto Networks, Sage, Santander, and NCC Group have joined the scheme as ambassadors. They will champion implementation of the Code, share practical guidance, and provide feedback to inform future cyber security policy.
Thomas Harvey, Chief Information Security Officer at Santander UK, said: “We are pleased to be an ambassador for the UK government’s Software Security Code of Practice and it reflects our broader commitment to collective resilience. By advocating for these standards we’re not just protecting Santander and our customers, we are helping to build a more secure digital economy for everyone.” By investing in cyber resilience, the government is protecting digital public services, supporting digital construction delivery, securing supply chains, and reinforcing trust as the UK accelerates public sector digital transformation nationwide
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