A core task of any forward thinking Government worth its salt is constantly to ask: what must we do to secure the prosperity of the nation over the generation ahead? The task is not to defend industries and economies in their present form, frozen in aspic, but to seek out the new markets, new methods, and new technologies that will provide the jobs and incomes our children and grandchildren will rely on.
The basis of our future prosperity is always changing. From the wool of the fifteenth century, to the coal and cotton of the nineteenth, it is impossible to predict with certainty, but we must prepare for what we can see through the fog of the future.
Through that fog it is increasingly clear that our prosperity in the twenty first century will be built, or rather designed, at the intersection of inspired creativity and technological brilliance. No longer is it about widgets or quantity of stuff. It's about things - goods and services - that people really want because they solve a problem and do so in a way that is a joy to use.
Who buys a clunky phone? Or puts up with a second rate service anymore? Expectations are rising and this presents an opportunity.
Why is the Range Rover so spectacularly successful? What underpins Apple's success? What drives success in music, fashion, or home goods? All of these require the combination of creative flair and technological perfection to be the successes they are.
And guess what? Britain is brilliant at all of them. Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is one of the fastest growing car companies in the world. The iPhone was designed by an Englishman.
But we must not rest on our laurels. With our exit from the EU we must be a global Britain. JLR may be British born but it's owned by an Indian company that turned it around. Jony Ive may have invented the iPhone, but he went to America to do it.
So we must redouble our efforts to have global reach. And we must redouble our efforts at home.
The good news is, we can work to hone this connection between our amazing tech businesses and our extraordinary, world beating cultural assets. Take just one example. Productions by the Royal Opera House, for example, are now screened in real time from its Covent Garden home to more than 500 cinemas across the UK - allowing audiences to enjoy its shows on their doorstep.
This is just the start. Our Digital Strategy set out how we will make sure businesses have access to the skills and infrastructure they need to make the most out of the opportunities offered by digital. Our Culture White Paper sets out how we'll develop our nation's amazing creativity. Our Culture is Digital project, launched earlier this month, is all about bringing the two together and mining this rich seam.
It's an exciting area. So much is already happening. We can help prepare Britain for the rest of the twenty first century, maintain our outward looking, global approach, and play to our historic strengths. That's one way, in Government, we can keep looking forward in the service of the whole country.
Matt Hancock is the Minister of State for Digital. This is an article from Bright Blue’s magazine The robotic revolution published before the general election.