High profile cyber attacks highlight the need for government intervention, says business leaders. Credit: Shutterstock/Gorodenkoff

The UK is set to unveil a new skills initiative at the Global Cyber Skills Summit as the UK, US and EU convene as part of a “renewed focus” to tackle cyber security threats.

Cyber Security Minister Feryal Clark confirmed that the UK will launch a regional skills programme to fund initiatives such as apprenticeships to build local pipelines of cyber security experts across England and Northern Ireland, as well as funding companies developing new forms of cyber security.

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Alongside the initiative, Innovate UK is leading a £1.3m investment in universities, local councils and businesses to strengthen cyber security skills training.

Cyber Security Minister Feryal Clark said: “The UK needs a significant improvement in its cyber defences. Later this year, we’ll bring forward new measures to better protect the nation from cyber-crime and our new regional skills programme will support the next generation of talent and innovators.”

The summit, hosted at Wilton Park in West Sussex, aims to establish a skills road during a period of heightened threat.

In recent months there have been major attacks against NHS Hospitals, the Ministry of Defence, and Transport for London, causing IT outages and downtime across critical national infrastructure.

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Andy Ward, SVP International for Absolute Security, said: “This coalition to tackle threats and boost cyber skills is a welcome sight. Particularly when it comes to state-sponsored threats, public services and critical national infrastructure are at the top of the hit list, containing vast amounts of sensitive data that can have a catastrophic impact if IT systems are breached.”

Recent findings from the government’s Cyber Security Skills in the UK Labour Market Survey highlighted that while the shortfall across the cyber security workforce has been reduced, 44% of UK businesses still lack the skills to protect themselves from online threats.

David Manfield, associate director for cyber security at Investigo, said: “Hiring cyber staff is the top talent pain point for the boardrooms across the UK, so the government, industry and recruiters must work closely to create pathways to encourage talent into cybersecurity.”