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It鈥檚 good to be in Newport.

Though I have to say I鈥檓 glad I鈥檓 not visiting Wales in a few weeks鈥� time. If the Rugby World Cup was anything to go by it might be quite painful for an Englishman to visit Wales after 12 March.

The rugby team鈥檚 obviously one centre of Welsh excellence. But later today I鈥檒l be visiting several other local innovation centres, and I鈥檝e already been hugely impressed by what you鈥檝e shown me here at the ONS, which has underlined your commitment to technological modernisation and the honing of talent.

Seventy-five years ago, Winston Churchill created the Central Statistical Office (CSO) to improve on the coherence and availability of national statistics.

Plenty has changed since 1941 鈥� not just the year the CSO was brought into this world, but also the first functional British jet, tupperware, velcro and, of course, the slinky.

But the 2 challenges Churchill was trying to tackle 鈥� coherence and openness 鈥� remain the same, even as the world has become more complex and diverse.

As technology marches on, we have unparalleled opportunities to use data to transform the services we provide and improve how the country is run. It鈥檚 more essential today than ever before that government is built on a foundation of high-quality, comprehensive and coherent statistics.

It鈥檚 said that 90% of all the data ever produced in history was generated in the past 2 years. The different kinds of data are also multiplying, from purchasing transactions to sensors, the Internet of Things and social networking sites.

New open data sets of unprecedented scale and variety are springing up, often in real time. This presents us in government with an opportunity like nothing we鈥檝e ever seen before.

It鈥檚 a revolution we need to grasp with both hands. That means 3 things - it means recognising the potential of the rich national resource that data presents, it means being curious about new ideas and ways of doing absolutely everything, and it means opening ourselves up to the public and towards each other across government. There is massive potential in data, we need the curiosity and openness. Let us take these 3 in turn.

In the public and private sector, data is fuelling improvements unimaginable a few short years ago. It鈥檚 transforming how we travel and shop, the way we go out and the way we interact with each other.

And it鈥檚 changing how we deliver government.

We can deliver services that are cheaper, faster, more accessible and more secure. Services that respond with targeted solutions to specific problems. Services driven not by Whitehall but by the needs of citizens.

The potential of data as a national asset

To do this we must recognise the raw potential of the data at our fingertips.

Newport has long been a world-leading centre of industry 鈥� it was a crucial coal port and a focal point for the South Wales Valleys throughout the industrial era.

200 years ago this city was a hotbed of the industrial revolution. It is no stranger to leading industry, to innovation and to the tide of technological change.

Today we live in an entirely different world. Today, instead of coal, data is the most valuable raw material of our age. The way I see it, statistics are its refined product, and this is the refinery.

And to fulfil the potential of the ONS in the 21st century we still need to be the best and the most imaginative country in the world when it comes to using our resources.

We鈥檙e in the foothills of a data revolution. Data is no longer just a record of something that happened. It鈥檚 a mineable commodity from which we can extract value. It鈥檚 the unseen infrastructure of the digital economy, as important as any road or railway.

It鈥檚 not just the ONS. In South Wales we have a big data cluster: DVLA, Companies House, ONS and the IPO.

So there is increasing potential for a South Wales big data cluster and build the ecosystem-public, private and academic that can deliver the capability we need.

The ONS鈥� role in harnessing this resource

To harness our data resources, statistics will be crucial. Statistics are taking on ever greater importance in a world underpinned by increasingly evidence-based decisions. And that goes far beyond working out the odds at Cheltenham.

The ONS is crucial in the production of the statistics government relies on to make good policy, and its statistics are held in high regard throughout government, business and the wider public.

The 2021 census is a valuable opportunity to re-assert that reputation and consolidate our data resources.

When the first census of population took place back in 1801, the population of England and Wales was given as 9 million.

Our next census will be the largest peacetime operation ever undertaken in the UK. It will be digital-by-default, and we are aiming for the highest online response target of any census in the world, at 75%.

In the census each decade and the work that you do in Newport and Titchfield each year, you take raw data and turn it into life-changing improvements, everywhere from the classroom to the hospital bed. In doing so you change lives up and down the country.

So my point is the potential of technology. My second is about our response: curiosity. It鈥檚 crucial that we engage with curiosity towards change.

You鈥檙e pioneering the data science agenda, leading analytical professions in building the right infrastructure and developing the specialist skills we need to make the most of the data revolution.

Through the recently initiated Data Science Learning Academy, you鈥檙e spreading that leadership.

And you鈥檙e pushing the agenda across government through programmes like the Data Science Accelerator.

You鈥檙e expanding your horizons beyond government. The Big Data Team鈥檚 efforts on web scraping show how we can harness alternative data sources - in this case real-time supermarket data - to deliver more accurate, cost-effective outputs.

The same spirit of curiosity is at the heart of your innovation lab, which uses state-of-the-art technology to find new data sources and techniques. And it鈥檚 why I鈥檝e asked the Open Data Institute to help us connect with the start-ups leading the data field.

Next I鈥檓 visiting the Alacrity Foundation. The ONS鈥� partnership with this unique organisation is a great example of how we can partner with outside bodies to nurture the brightest and best young talent.

To succeed and thrive in this new world, where knowledge is so dispersed, we need to be as curious as possible and embrace not just our own ideas, but also those at the cutting edge of the data revolution. And I urge you to be part of that revolution.

Openness

That brings me to my third point. I want the spirit of curiosity you鈥檙e showing here to be embedded in everything government is doing. The best ideas can come from absolutely anywhere. And that鈥檚 why we need to open ourselves up to ideas like never before.

The opportunities for innovation are a function of how much raw information is out there, and how many people can access and harness that information.

I鈥檓 delighted to see you continuing to open up your website, taking in huge levels of feedback and making your gateway to the public more agile, in a more cost-efficient way. I鈥檓 thrilled to see the new website go live.

It鈥檚 part of our radical open data policy: we鈥檝e now published 23,000 datasets, covering 拢200 billion of public spending.

And part of being open is being open about the challenges we face. The ONS鈥� work is going to become even more crucial in the coming years. So it鈥檚 imperative that we keep up with how the world is changing.

Yes, the digital world is a maelstrom right now, but if we work together we can do more than just keep our heads above water 鈥� we can ride the waves to unimaginable places.

Yes, under John Pullinger鈥檚 impressive leadership the team will have to be adaptable in its size, shape, and skill-set.

But I want to underline this message you鈥檝e heard before. Newport is Britain鈥檚 home of economic statistics, and that is not a resource we are going to squander. The ONS will stay in Newport.

And more than that, we鈥檙e going to invest to build our long-term capacity here, working with others in the region to create a hub and a centre of excellence for data handling and economic analysis. We鈥檙e going to double-down on Newport.

Of course, the digital world means roles will change, and some old ways of doing things will cease to exist. But we鈥檙e committed to working with you in that transition.

Through the Learning Academy and other initiatives, everyone will have the chance to gain new skills and continue to make a massively valuable contribution.

Change is a challenge, but also an opportunity 鈥� an opportunity for all of us to gain new skills, and for you to re-assert the crucial contribution the ONS makes to our country.

Your programme of change and Charlie Bean鈥檚 review will give the ONS a foundation to plan for the future, and to stay ahead of the curve of digital change with a strong, positive vision.

As the report highlights, we need an ONS that is less reactive and more proactive; more curious, open and self-critical.

These are just some of the challenges you鈥檒l face in the years ahead, but I鈥檓 confident through the changes you鈥檙e making you鈥檒l be more than capable of overcoming them.

Cabinet Office support and reform package

We are here to support you as we work together to reform government and unleash human ingenuity at all levels of the public sector.

Finally let me set out some of the most important projects this change will feed into. One big step we must take across government is to build single, canonical data registers kept up-to-date by one responsible authority and used across government. We don鈥檛 need 7 lists of countries of the world. We need 1, and it probably should be maintained by the Foreign Office.

We are also working together on how we share data within government. We鈥檒l do this while maintaining the appropriate safeguards, but the prize is extremely valuable 鈥� more efficient and high-quality statistics, and huge potential for improvements to public services.

We will shortly bring forward proposals to improve the legal framework around research and statistics, tackling fraud and debt, and improving public services.

We鈥檝e consulted widely over 2 years of collaboration, to build modern rules to govern the use of data in public services.

We want to give public authorities much greater clarity about what data can be shared, cutting delays so research with economic and social benefits can be conducted in a timely fashion.

We will put in place specific safeguards to ensure any information that could be used to identify individuals is protected, enhancing privacy.

These changes to legislation will not only ensure you have the tools to produce world-class statistics, they will let government feed the most up-to-date and relevant data into policy decisions, helping us deliver reforms from the Troubled Families programme to better targeted fuel poverty payments. They will better equip us to tackle fraud and debt.

Through them we can enhance social mobility, crime prevention and improve services for the citizens we serve.

Conclusion

So, these are times of change. We can 鈥� and must 鈥� tap into that same spirit in the data revolution. That鈥檚 what it will take for us to turn our rich data assets into world-leading innovation.

If we do this right the prizes are huge, and will change the very fabric of how the country is run.

Let us tackle these challenges head on and turn them into opportunities. You鈥檝e already shown you鈥檙e willing and able to do this. We are backing you to deliver. I can鈥檛 wait to see what you come up with next.

Thank you.