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Following the ministerial reshuffle on Saturday, Angus T aylor is Assistant Minister to the Prime M inister for Cities and Digital Transition . O n digital government, he replac es Communications Minister Mit c h Fifield appointed last September.  Mr T aylor's T witter a ccount states " Rhodes scholar. Business consulting and agriculture background @ mckinsey and Port Jackson Partners. Passionate about good government" So roll out the red carpet as d iscussion gets underway about access to information, public data, public integrity, use of technology, better services and public resources, in the context of developing Australia's Open Government Partnership N ational Action P lan. Lots o f roo m for your thoughts, ideas, suggestions and observations. J oin the Open Government Partnership Network , or tell the Prime Minister's d epartment directly what you think. On access to government data, below t wo reports about opportunities for giant steps ...

IFLA On Right to Know Day   NSW Information Commissioner Elizabeth Tydd released a report by Professor Anita Stuhmcke of the University of Technology, Sydney commissioned by the IPC that provides an insight into the types of practical mechanisms utilised in selected international jurisdictions to promote open government through information sharing and citizen engagement.  Despite the title "Advancing the objects of the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (NSW): an international comparative evaluation of measures used to promote government information release"   the report is relevant anywhere policy makers (hopefully) and advocates (certainly) are wrestling with the challenge of how to encourage proactive release of government information. From the Executive Summary SECTION 3: The Concept of Open Government: History and challenges "This report bases its findings upon the three characteristics of open government as defined by the Organisation for Econ...

It didn't take long for the Prime Minister to put down a marker that he is serious about the shift to 21st Century openness. The Administrative Arrangements Order (pdf) released yesterday sets out changes in ministerial responsibility. "Public data policy" gets a mention for the first time and with "Gov 2.0 and related matters", for years the bailiwick of Finance, is now a function for the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet. The PM and the newly appointed Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Digital Government Mitch Fifield are sure to be very 'hands on.' "Related matters" presumably signals that the Digital Transformation Office transfers from Communications where the PM as Communications minister got things going. The PM has ambitions in this field. In a speech in May Mr Turnbull said Australia "should aim to become the world's leading digital economy" and foreshadowed international and national initiatives: "...