Archive for 'cabinetoffice'
Open source policy: back where we started
It's good to see the coordinated publication of departments' responses to the Programme For Government exercise - including the Cabinet Office's reponse on government transparency, which also covered the use of open source software: We are committed to the use of open standards and recognise that open source software offers government the opportunity of lower [...] read on »
Directgov returns to the Cabinet Office
I couldn't help smiling at the news of Directgov going back to its original home in the Cabinet Office. Funny how things go full-circle: launched from within the Cabinet Office in April 2004, to COI (an 'ideal location') in March 2006, to DWP in April 2008, back to Cabinet Office in July 2010. The Cabinet [...] read on »
Websites under £20k dodge Maude’s gateway
There's an intriguing mismatch between the answers to two PQs tabled by former Cabinet Office minister Tom Watson today. In one, he asks 'what criteria have been set to govern the creation of new Government websites', to which Francis Maude replies: I am determined to reduce the number of Government websites and so the creation [...] read on »
Another week, another major consultation
First it was the Programme for Government, then the public sector Spending Challenge... and now it's Your Freedom: We're working to create a more open and less intrusive society through our Programme for Government. We want to restore Britain’s traditions of freedom and fairness, and free our society of unnecessary laws and regulations – both [...] read on »
Gov websites to use open source ‘whenever possible’
In the response to a pretty innocuous parliamentary question from Tom Watson, new Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude makes a statement which could, on the face of it, be of monumental significance for UK e-government. The Government believe that departmental websites should be hubs for debate as well as information-where people come together to discuss [...] read on »
First they came for the Permanent Secretaries…
Some excitement this morning at the publication of names, positions and salary bands of the civil service's top 172 earners. A few names familiar to anyone reading this blog - Matt Tee, John Suffolk, Vanessa Lawrence, Alex Allan (one for the old-skool there!) - but mostly, it's departmental Permanent Secretaries, and very obviously senior staff. [...] read on »
Commentable Coalition plan
Out of the blue last week, I got a call from COI: was I available for an immediate, rapid turnaround WordPress job? I was a bit startled, and detail was lacking; but since this was precisely the kind of rapid-response thinking I've been trying to foster around WordPress for a couple of years, I couldn't [...] read on »
Civil servant socialising grinds to a halt
When it eventually came, after two and a half years of speculation, the announcement of the general election almost felt like a disappointment. But the welcome news finally came this morning: it's 'game on'. Or rather, if you're a civil servant - off. The day has seen a steady stream of tweets from civil servants [...] read on »
Cabinet Office's open source fail
A PQ from Conservative shadow minister for the Cabinet Office, Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what her policy is in respect of the installation and use of (a) Internet Explorer, (b) Firefox and (c) Opera website browsers by Government departments. To which Angela Smith replies: Government policy regarding installation and [...] read on »
Government beefs up open source policy – a bit
A bit out of the blue, this morning saw a revision of the UK government's open source policy. And whilst it still doesn't quite endorse the notion that open source solutions are fundamentally better solutions, it does ratchet up the expectations. Last year's revision to the 2005 policy statement introduced a subtle - but, I [...] read on »