Swannie bankrolls Gov 2.0 change program

James Riley
Wednesday, 12 May 2010 22:51

IT Policy - Government Tech Policy

Treasurer Wayne Swan's third federal Budget has delivered the first green shoots of public administration reform that incorporate core Web 2.0 technologies for citizen consultation and collaboration and incorporates broad philosophies of open government.

Chief among several budgeted initiatives was $38.7 million in additional funding over three years to the Australian Public Service Commission to drive the challenging cultural change within the public sector that is seen as a necessary precursor to allowing government to engage more effectively with citizens, community groups and business on policy development.

Overseen by Prime Minister & Cabinet and the Department of Finance, the initiatives fund many of the Gov 2.0 recommendations contained in PM&C's March report called Ahead of the Game: Blueprint for Reform of Australian Government Administration.

The report recommended the development of mechanisms for community engagement that utilised 2.0 technologies and services like Twitter and wikis, and to formulate policies and guidelines to allow public service employees to use these services confidently and within APS protocols.

It also directed Finance to develop policies that would make public sector data more open, accessible and reusable - and to identify what public service information could be published under an open licensing arrangement.

The report dovetailed with Finance's Government 2.0 Taskforce report that similarly pressed for an open government regime that would make open access to public information the default position for Government.

In releasing a formal response to the Gov 2.0 Taskforce recommendations, Finance Minister Lindsay Tanner acknowledged that the real challenge in implementing the initiative would be in changing public service culture to become more consultative.