From: Dan Jellinek To: egb-html Sent: 07/04/03 16:28 Subject: E-Government Bulletin - 07 April 2003 E-Government Bulletin is attached in HTML format. We also append it below as plain text. To receive in plain text only, please follow the instructions in the newsletter. +++E-GOVERNMENT BULLETIN - ISSUE 134, 07 April 2003. The email newsletter on electronic government, UK and worldwide. Please forward this free service to colleagues so they can subscribe by sending a blank email to [log in to unmask] for our text plus HTML version, or [log in to unmask] for the plain text version - full details at the end. We never pass on email addresses. For further information see: http://www.headstar.com/egb NOTE: This newsletter conforms to the accessible Text Email Newsletter (TEN) Standard, developed by our sister newsletter E- Access Bulletin. For details see: http://www.headstar.com/ten ++ISSUE 134 CONTENTS. 01: Gershon ultimatum for partnership working - firms told to clean up their act. 02: Public bodies are open source leaders - half are already converts. 03: South West to pioneer public wireless broadband - 80 million pound project planned. 04: Data protection guarantee drafted - simplified or watered down? 05: Security barriers - reader survey results. News in brief: 06: Online campaign - moving people onto the net; 07: Peer support - ODPM development scheme; 08: Procurement radicalism - report highlights waste. Section two: Preview - councils report. 09: Sewing up the patchwork of local innovation - There is a growing gap between locally and centrally managed e-government projects, according to a study to published later this month by the Improvement and Development Agency. Dan Jellinek reports. Section three: Case study - Housing Corporation. 10: Out of the comfort zone - The slow-changing world of social housing is gradually embracing the efficiencies of new technology. Jemima Kiss looks at the foundations being laid by the Housing Corporation. [Contents ends.] ++SPECIAL NOTICE: COUNCIL FORUM A online discussion forum on the future of local authority web sites is being hosted by the technology management body Socitm as a follow- up exercise to its annual council web survey 'Better Connected 2003'. All E-Government Bulletin readers are invited to participate at: http://www.socitm.gov.uk/insight/bclive [Special notice ends]. ++SECTION ONE: NEWS. +01: GERSHON ULTIMATUM FOR PARTNERSHIP WORKING. The technology industry must stop making "exorbitant claims" about its products and take urgent steps to reform the way it deals with government if public-private partnerships are not to be discredited as a means of delivering value for money, the government's procurement chief Peter Gershon said last week. In a barnstorming speech to an audience containing representatives from across the IT industry, Gershon said that following a spate of high profile technology disasters the government was taking steps to improve its practices, but the industry was not following suit. "The government for its part is seeking to become a more capable client through a number of initiatives," Gershon said. He cited the 'gateway' review process to improve the management of large-scale projects launched in 2001; and the Senior IT Forum which had developed a new framework for clear leadership of projects "that has often been lacking". But he said: "There is little visible evidence that the IT industry accepts that it too has weaknesses that it needs to address through a systematic programme. We have this naove view in government that the private sector knows what it is taking on, but in many cases we have been bitterly disappointed by the private sector's ability to analyse, price and manage risk. "Every day we are faced with suppliers making exorbitant claims. If they were supplying consumers directly the market would be regulated, but it is unregulated. The industry must grasp this nettle if strategic partnership is to become the preferred route for IT service delivery . . . the jury is still out." After the address Gershon told E-Government Bulletin he did not think there was a need to form a new pan-industry body to improve dealings with government. Instead existing bodies such as Intellect (http://www.intellectuk.org) needed to commit themselves to a programme of improvement. Ironically, Gershon's Office of Government Commerce is due to collaborate with Intellect to publish a new 'Effective partnering guide' towards the end of this month. A spokesperson for the office said this month the guide would "seek to take away the adversarial approach to technology projects". +02: PUBLIC BODIES ARE OPEN SOURCE LEADERS. The public sector is leading the way in deployment of open source software such as the Linux operating system, according to a new survey by OpenForum Europe (http://www.openforumeurope.org), a not-for-profit IT industry body which aims to boost the take-up of open source solutions. Some 50 per cent of public sector bodies surveyed by the body said they currently use some form of open source software, compared with 36 per cent across all sectors; 28 per cent in the financial services sector; and just 20 per cent in the retail sector. Evaluation of open source solutions has emerged as the most commonly cited strategy for reducing technology costs within public sector bodies, the survey found. Just under a third of respondents (31 per cent) are currently looking at open source as a possibility. However barriers do remain to further deployment of open source, the survey found. Some 43 per cent of public sector respondents cited 'availability of support' as a perceived inhibitor to using open source software, with 'lack of case studies'; 'lack of skills' and 'cost of change' among other potential problems most frequently cited. The report can be downloaded at: http://fastlink.headstar.com/ofe1 +03: SOUTH WEST TO PIONEER PUBLIC WIRELESS BROADBAND. A pioneering regional wireless broadband internet access programme for public sector and public use is to be launched in the South West of England, E-Government Bulletin has learned. Around 80 million pounds of EU investment is being sought to fund a plan drafted by the region's county councils - Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire - with private sector technology suppliers including BT, Intel and Radiant Networks. The project will serve rural areas where private suppliers have yet to establish a presence, beaming out broadband using high-powered fixed wireless networks and more localised 'Wi-Fi' wireless hotspots. "There is a public authority need for broadband in the South West. The partnership between the six counties will enable us to aggregate that need," said Huw Watts, an IT manager with Somerset County Council, which is co-ordinating the project. "In the early 20th century water and gas infrastructure had to be built and managed by local authorities because of market failure. We see this as the same kind of need." According to Watts, only a handful of telephone exchanges in Somerset can deliver broadband services over normal telephone lines, and cable TV networks are not found outside major cities. It is hoped that improved data networks could also help stimulate the local economy. "We're in need of regeneration and we're in need of clean industry," said Watts. "But we can't attract the kind of high technology businesses we would like without broadband infrastructure." The six counties will publish a report by the end of April on the web site of the South West Regional Assembly (http://www.southwest- ra.gov.uk), mapping out the details of the project. It is expected to recommend partnering with private sector suppliers to set up a 'special purpose vehicle' (SPV), a legal entity similar to a private company. According to Watts, the SPV hopes to raise around 80 million pounds from the European Investment Bank (http://www.eib.org). +04: DATA PROTECTION GUARANTEE DRAFTED. The government appears to have watered down plans to ask all public sector bodies to commit themselves to a lengthy set of undertakings on how they are protecting personal privacy when handling citizens' information, the Lord Chancellor's Department announced last week. A draft privacy guarantee published by the department for consultation (http://fastlink.headstar.com/lcd1) contains only around half the number of key principles as an earlier set of suggested guidelines published a year ago by the Cabinet Office's Performance and Innovation Unit (see http://fastlink.headstar.com/piu1). The omissions include undertakings that public bodies will make it as easy as possible for people to exercise their right to withhold unnecessary information; and will automatically reveal when information could be passed on to other bodies without a person's knowledge. The document also reminds citizens of their responsibility to give accurate information and to notify public bodies when their information is inaccurate. +05: SECURITY BARRIERS. Some 64 per cent of public sector managers feel that security concerns are impeding the public take-up of electronic services, according to a new survey of E-Government Bulletin readers. And just over half of respondents (53 per cent) felt security concerns were impeding the development of e-services in the first instance. Computer viruses are seen as the biggest security headaches for public sector system operators. Some 96 per cent of respondents, and all respondents from central government, cited 'viruses, worms and trojans' as a security threat. Around two-thirds of respondents said hackers posed a threat to their systems, while around a third of central government respondents felt foreign agents using high-tech snooping or hacking techniques posed a significant threat. Anti-virus software, email filters and firewalls were the solutions most commonly deployed to address security threats. Some 73 per cent of respondents said they had established a corporate policy on computer security, and almost all - 91 per cent - said their organisations had an 'acceptable use policy' for email and/or web browsing in place. The survey of 180 readers involved in central and local e-government projects took place in March. The full results will inform workshops at a conference to be run on 20 May in London, the e-Government Security Exchange: http://www.electronic-government.com/security.htm ++NEWS IN BRIEF: +06: ONLINE CAMPAIGN: The government is to launch a major publicity campaign in May designed to encourage non-users of the internet to visit their nearest 'UK Online' centre for free access. Local authorities are encouraged to launch parallel publicity drives to promote their local access centres. More information will be published later this month at: http://www.e-envoy.gov.uk/partners +07: PEER SUPPORT: For the first time, this year's council winners of 'beacon' status will have a duty to work with less innovative councils in a 'peer support' scheme, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has announced. Some 58 councils will share in five million pounds worth of beacon funding, including seven councils picked under the theme of 'social inclusion through ICT.' The peer support scheme will include a series of learning events led by the local government Improvement and Development Agency, which manages the beacon council scheme. See: http://www.local-regions.odpm.gov.uk/beacon +08: PROCUREMENT RADICALISM: "Disorganised and wasteful" procurement practices by English local authorities squander 400 million pounds a year, according to a report published this month by Best Value Procurement, an online procurement systems provider. Electronic solutions have been shown to halve purchasing times, the report says: http://fastlink.headstar.com/bvp1 Meanwhile the Office of Government Commerce, which oversees central government buying, announced last week that an open source e- procurement system called Purchase & Pay had gone on trial at the Department of Work and Pensions: http://fastlink.headstar.com/dwp1 [Section one ends]. ++SPONSORED CASE STUDIES: SHARING E-GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE. In this section, companies highlight e-government partnerships of which they are proud. Readers interested in exploring these issues are invited to participate in the Electronic Government Forum in London on 20 May. Each study will inform a discussion group and sponsors are offering guest places for public sector readers. For details follow the links: + CHARNWOOD INVESTS IN CRM SYSTEM. Residents in Charnwood will soon experience a 21st century level of service delivery thanks to a one-stop contact centre using technology from Orchard Information Systems: http://www.electronic-government.com/orchard/charnwood.htm + DEMAND MANAGEMENT AT NORTHAMPTONSHIRE POLICE. Contact centres strive to optimise staffing levels to meet peaks and troughs in call volume. This case study from Lanner Group illustrates the issues involved in balancing service level with cost of delivery: http://www.electronic-government.com/lanner + DATA SECURITY FOR HELSINKI VIRTUAL VILLAGE. The City of Helsinki is behind a public-private initiative to transform a local undeveloped area into a virtual community. Check Point solutions provide the network environment with the necessary level of data security: http://www.electronic-government.com/checkpoint/helsinki.htm + USING A SINGLE VIEW TO IMPROVE CUSTOMER SERVICE. Providing a high quality personal service to large numbers of contacts is a challenge facing many public sector organisations. This London Bridge software case study illustrates how it has been tackled in the finance sector, by Royal & Sun Alliance: http://www.electronic-government.com/londonbridgesoftware +HAVE YOU GOT A CASE STUDY TO SHARE? Readers from the private sector are invited to contact us for details and insertion costs. Public sector readers are encouraged to nominate private sector partners who may be interested in being featured. Please email John Webster [log in to unmask] [Sponsored case studies end.] ++SECTION TWO: PREVIEW - COUNCILS REPORT. +: SEWING UP THE PATCHWORK OF LOCAL INNOVATION. by Dan Jellinek [log in to unmask] A discontinuity between service innovation by individual local councils and more centrally driven e-government initiatives is to be highlighted by the local government Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA - http://www.idea.gov.uk) later this month. The agency's third annual report on the development of local e- government in the UK, published in association with technology managers' body Socitm, focuses on around 30 local case studies outside the mainstream e-government projects such as the pathfinder council programme. In each case it examines how services are being changed for the better through local innovation. The projects include: - a Cumbria schools pilot of interactive whiteboards in classrooms, alongside computer suites and teacher support systems. The authority is also placing technology equipment in local and village schools for use by parents and the wider community, to build confidence and support children's learning; - a joint project between Northampton Borough Council, Northamptonshire County Council, Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Trust and The Alzheimer's Society to use new assistive and non- intrusive technologies to help people with dementia stay independently in their own homes for longer; - a partnership project led by Telford and Wrekin council to improve the exchange and use of data between key agencies that provide services for children in poverty, at risk of abuse or with other needs, and their families; - a Derwentside project to provide communities with broadband internet access, which is now offering services to the public sector across the region. One set of users are health professionals in north Durham, who have secured online access to electronic patient records and test results, including x-ray and other images; - Eastserve.com, a project providing internet access and training to over 4,000 people in the Beswick, Openshaw and Clayton areas of East Manchester. The project is part of a major regeneration effort working with the police and other local agencies to reduce crime and anti-social behaviour, strengthen community cohesion and tackle drug abuse; - a scheme by Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council to develop new technology and knowledge-based employment opportunities in an area where traditional employers and traditional industries had collapsed. The council provides training and support to local people to ensure that they are ready to take up new employment opportunities; "A number of these projects have been under development for some time, having grown up in response to a local need and making use of local knowledge," says Martin Ferguson, e-government advisor at IDeA. They have emerged often without reference to a corporate plan within the council or the authority's formal 'implementing electronic government' statement. So there is a need to make a connection, to highlight good ideas and draw them in to the corporate fold. Ways of overcoming short-term project-based funding need to be explored to support the dissemination of knowledge across local government, the report will conclude. "Some of the central funding mechanisms need to be more responsive to locally-generated initiatives," he says. "There is a need to focus on taking the knowledge gained in one area and spreading it to others. Many funding schemes as the pathfinder scheme (http://www.lgolpathfinder.gov.uk) are also too focused towards projects and 'products', with the authority as producer and citizen as consumer or services. But this misses a dimension of governance and citizenship." Local schemes should also be examined and understood in terms of their broader effects on many different service areas, not simply pigeon-holed as a project in one area such as leisure or transport, Ferguson says. "Projects designed to assist in one service area often have unexpected benefits in others. For example a Brighton project to use new technologies to make the bus services more efficient also addresses community safety issues by allowing people to wait for buses in brightly-lit supermarket foyers until they know it is about to arrive. And projects like this will also have positive effects on the environment." Another key message of the report will be that more help needs to be given to voluntary sector agencies to engage in local e-government projects. Extra funding for this has already been allocated by central government for distribution by the Home Office's active community unit. "Citizens Advice Bureaux should be key players, as they are represented in nearly every local authority area," Ferguson says. We are looking for practical measures to involve them in local e- government projects." NOTE: 'Local e-government Now 2003' will be launched at Socitm's Spring seminar in Essex on 29 April (see http://www.socitm.gov.uk). [Section two ends.] + SPECIAL NOTICE: ELECTRONIC GOVERNMENT FORUM - TWO-FOR-ONE READER OFFER. The publishers of E-Government Bulletin are once again hosting the Electronic Government Forum in London on 20 May. The forum allows readers to share experiences in the drive towards electronic service delivery. Participants can use the event web site to construct their own programme of meetings and discussion groups, and to put forward experiences they are willing to share. The cost is just 95 pounds plus VAT and online registration facilities, together with details of discussion group topics, are at: http://www.electronic-government.com Readers who register for a place at the forum will be eligible for a free place at a follow-on evening seminar on e-democracy. Speakers include Paul Waller, director of e-democracy, Office of the e-Envoy; Ken Ritchie, chief executive, Electoral Reform Society; Dan Jellinek, editor, E-Government Bulletin; Brian White MP; Edward Davey MP; and Rt. Hon. Sir George Young MP. To take up the two-for-one offer, write 'bulletin' after your surname on the online registration form. [Special notice ends.] ++SECTION THREE: CASE STUDY - HOUSING CORPORATION. +: OUT OF THE COMFORT ZONE by Jemima Kiss [log in to unmask] . The demand for affordable new homes in England continues to rise. Social policy research group the Joseph Rowntree Foundation predicts a shortage of one million homes in the next 20 years. The problem is most severe in London and the South-East where key workers are often priced out of local housing market. The Housing Corporation (http://www.housingcorp.gov.uk) holds ultimate responsibility for the management of around 1.5 million homes in England (Scotland and Wales have devolved powers for housing). The body has invested a total of 25 billion pounds of public money since 1964, and oversees a network of around 2,000 registered social landlords (RSLs), which apply to the corporation to fund new build projects or building repairs. RSLs can be small private companies, housing associations or local authorities. Like all public sector bodies in England, the corporation has been gearing up to meet a target of delivering all its services online or in digital formats by 2005. This work has entailed the development of two major online systems to streamline the funding process, and provide more accessible information for tenants and housing associations. It aims to prove its cost-effectiveness by improving the efficiency with which it allocates a further 3 billion pounds worth of public money over the next three years. The first system deployed was a web-based 'investment management system' (IMS), largely designed in-house. Launched in 2001, the system allows local authorities and RSLs to seek out relevant funding, apply online and monitor the progress of their applications. Gillian Watson, head of communications at the Housing Corporation, says: "Housing can be a very comfy sector and some organisations don't like change, so we ran an extensive pilot to let housing associations get to grips with the system." Before the introduction of the IMS in 2001, the corporation would receive as many as 8,000 applications on paper each year, Watson says. All this data would be manually entered into the evaluation system so that the bids could be assessed - creating a duplication of work and less accurate data entry. When first launched, housing associations reported problems with basic software compatibility and had no easy way to save or print submissions. The system also had a limited capacity of 140 users - despite a potential 13000 applicants - which created bottlenecks at major deadlines. Mike Brookes, Head of Design & Product Quality at the Notting Hill Housing Group (http://www.nottinghillonline.com), said there had been some teething troubles with the system. "But the process works fine now that the flaws have been ironed out. The only concern we have is the straitjacket nature of the process. It's not flexible enough for more complex applications as the same structure is used to bid for one flat or 2,000 new homes." The second major new system for the Housing Corporation is an Application Service Provider (ASP) system, due to be introduced in April 2003. IT solutions firm Elonex (http://www.elonex.co.uk) will manage the system while Netstore (http://www.netstore.net) will provide a new high-speed infrastructure for all the corporation's technology from internal systems to web sites, hosting at two secure centres in Gateshead and Heathrow. Six hundred staff at the corporation's ten sites across England will use the ASP system to share files - rather than simply emailing documents to each other - and access a range of software packages as and when they need them. The new system will also provide homeworking opportunities for around a quarter of the organisation's employees. Staff can use portable computers to share files, use applications and access information - working anywhere with web access. The corporation's Innovation and Good Practice pilot in 2001 proved that flexible working hours increased productivity and reduced commuting stress, as well as encouraging more family-friendly hours. The irony of all this is that, just as the Housing Corporation transforms its working practices and boosts its efficiency, moves are afoot to cut its powers and perhaps even to scrap the body altogether. Until April 2003, alongside its other tasks the corporation fulfilled the role of Housing Inspectorate, with responsibility for improving performance in housing authorities. Last September, however, Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott announced that the Audit Commission (http://www.auditcommission.gov.uk) would take over the role of inspections from April 2003. The announcement followed stated government intentions to move the corporation's central role of allocating money for social housing to regional assemblies, if these bodies proved successful in gaining local support. Some commentators now believe it is only a matter of time before the corporation is wound up altogether. Gillian Watson is upbeat about the body's future however, recognising that the organisation must adapt to government policy to survive. "Good service is about responding to the behest of government - we have to do our best to fit in with government strategies. The truth is that we still provide funding for 22,000 new homes each year and with an improved, effective delivery mechanism, the corporation is bigger than ever. "The foreseeable future is sound for the corporation and there is nothing to suggest we won't continue to deliver for some time to come." [Section three ends.] ++END NOTES. +HOW TO RECEIVE E-GOVERNMENT BULLETIN. To subscribe to this free fortnightly bulletin as an HTML attachment email: [log in to unmask] or for the plain text version email: [log in to unmask] . To unsubscribe from the HTML version email: [log in to unmask] and to unsubscribe from the text version email: [log in to unmask] . For further information on subscription, including how to subscribe or unsubscribe from an alternative email address and how to find out if an particular address is subscribed, see: http://www.headstar.com/egb/subs.html . +COPYRIGHT NOTICE. - Copyright 2003 Headstar Ltd. Regular circulation or reproduction of the bulletin by third parties is forbidden. Properly accredited articles (always including source details, bulletin subscription details and web address) or entire single issues of the bulletin (including this notice) may be forwarded to individuals or groups of people as long as it is made clear that to receive a regular copy, people must subscribe individually. For queries about article reproduction, syndication or other copyright issues please email [log in to unmask] . ISSN 1476-6310 +PERSONNEL - EDITORIAL. Editor - Dan Jellinek [log in to unmask] Deputy editor - Phil Cain [log in to unmask] Features editor - Derek Parkinson [log in to unmask] Reporter - Mel Poluck [log in to unmask] . - ADVERTISING. [log in to unmask] . A searchable archive of our back-issues can be found on our web site: http://www.headstar.com/egb . [Issue ends.] <<april2003.html>> ************************************************************************************ Distributed through Cyber-Society-Live [CSL]: CSL is a moderated discussion list made up of people who are interested in the interdisciplinary academic study of Cyber Society in all its manifestations.To join the list please visit: http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/cyber-society-live.html *************************************************************************************