New report on UK cities and m-Government Intro and Chapter 1 available here: http://www.nlgn.org.uk/pdfs/upload/cutwiressummary.pdf
Press Release: Thinks Tank calls for radical use of mGovernment to drive transformation of local governance Wednesday, February 8th, 2006 A new report published today by independent think tank the New Local Government Network (NLGN), and supported by O2, is calling on local authorities to fully realise the potential of mobile IT and adopt a greater mGovernment approach towards the delivery of local services and governance arrangements. Arguing that the widespread use of mobile technology by UK citizens will not stop with their interactions with commercial companies, Cutting the Wires: Mobile IT and the transformation of local services and governance warns that such change is unavoidable and that local authorities face a stark choice: Councils can choose to lead and direct this process of change, moulding attitudes and giving direction both within and outside local government, improving performance and rejuvenating the relationship between the citizen and representative. Or, local government can choose not to pre-empt these changing expectations and hope that existing structures for representation and service delivery can cope with evolving expectations. The latter would, without doubt, present a significant risk to the future relevance of local governance in the UK. The NLGN report has been welcomed by local government minister, Jim Fitzpatrick MP. Writing in the foreword, Mr Fitzpatrick observes the need to develop a new strategy that builds on the success of local eGovernment to date but which provokes a step change in local authority performance: One of the benefits that this report highlights is how using mobile technologies can deliver better jobs and reinforce the public service ethos. Being mobile can enable local public servants to deliver better outcomes and better fulfil local needs, increasing job satisfaction. And, by linking with the devices in citizens pockets, it can ensure that public services will be relevant to peoples lives in the future. While the report by eGovernment commentator Michael Cross and NLGNs James MacGregor draws on current practice to prove how trailblazing local authorities are making a real difference to the lives of individuals and communities, it also offers future scenarios of what might result from officers and councillors interacting through mGovernment: [ ] Mary remembers the movie clip sent last week about the obscene message sprayed on the bus shelter, and emails local councillor Bas. Her next stop is one of the councils neighbourhood offices. On the way, she notices that the bus shelter has been cleaned up. Making sure her phone is in constructive dialogue rather than complaint mode, she sends a quick thanks to Bas. [ ] Responding to the picture of mobile IT use painted by Cutting the Wires, Mike Short, Vice President for Research & Development at O2 said: Mobile phone technology is already enabling local councils to transform and improve the way they interact with citizens and deliver public services. But what we have seen to date is just the beginning. If fully embraced mobile IT can deliver much more by empowering people who both provide and rely upon local services, and enable local public servants to spend more time in the communities they serve. The NLGN report concludes with key policy recommendations for both local and central government, and also technology suppliers: Local government To transform working practices and relationships with citizens by using mobile IT, thereby realising potential benefits for citizens, service users, officers and politicians To adopt performance management software systems for pushing up efficiency, populated by data collected with mobile devices such as a digital dashboard To incorporate mobile IT commitments into existing strategies, in partnership with neighbouring authorities and regional bodies To lead the development of effective and responsible data sharing between departments and agencies at local level To develop and embed an innovative culture, garnering political and senior officer buy-in for innovative approaches and creative solutions To be accurate and transparent about the cost of mobile IT projects, demonstrably quantifying costs and savings in time, capital and office space Central government To fund an exemplary mobile local authority to go far beyond current pilots to show what local government could look like in 2012. e.g. through requiring effective and imaginative use of mobile IT from contenders in the Digital Challenge To help develop an effective tool for constructing sound business cases at local level To legislate on the principal of assumed competence of local government in sharing personal data between local agencies To recognise the reality of the digital divide in setting strategies involving mobile technology. It is central governments responsibility to ensure all citizens can use electronic public services To play a pivotal role in procurement, using national leverage to secure better deals, while explicitly maintaining diversity in available hardware and software solutions To support efforts to freely disseminate knowledge from projects such as Nomad To develop minimum, output-based standards for local authorities, while avoiding being over-prescriptive, allowing for local flexibility according to local circumstances Technology suppliers Handset manufacturers should work closely with local public bodies to devise hardware suited to public needs Network operators should work more closely with the public sector to design pricing models applicable to public need Network operators should continue to develop and market mesh networks to provide seamless data connectivity The industry should provide a clear roadmap of future development, to allow public bodies to invest with confidence --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "telecom-cities" group. 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