UK Open Gov
The UK Open Government Network (OGN) is a coalition of active citizens and civil society organisations committed to making government work better for people through increased transparency, participation and accountability. The OGN mobilises and coordinates civil society to effectively advocate for open government reforms, and works with government to identify, develop and implements the UK’s commitments under the global Open Government Partnership.
“I hope that this can be the beginning of renewed interest in open government.” Leaders brief Northern Ireland Assembly
On Wednesday 4th December, representatives of the Northern Ireland Open Government Network briefed the Committee for Finance at the Northern Ireland Assembly on the current precarious state of Open Government in Northern Ireland. They included Rebekah McCabe (Chair), Colm Burns, and Andrew Bolster. The open remarks prepared by the Chair can be read here and…
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Rebuilding Trust Requires A Strategic Response from Government | Kevin Keith
The immediate response to reject any future clothing donations was a missed opportunity by the government. This issue around ‘freebies’ is an uncomfortable one, but it highlights a critical function of our democratic system: politicians making disclosures, and journalists holding them accountable in the public interest. A more strategic approach would have been to embrace…
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How damaging is ‘giftgate’? | Ben Worthy & Michele Crepaz
Ben Worthy and Michele Crepaz dig into the Labour gifts row, saying that while Starmer may not have broken any rules the story creates difficulties for the PM. They suggest that reforms to the ethics system need to be visible to shift public perceptions. Keir Starmer is in trouble over lobbying. Following a drumbeat of…
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BLOG | How do we Solve a Problem like Lobbying? | Dr Ben Worthy & Dr Michele Crepaz
Lobbying is a vital part of democracy but the perceived connection between money and politics has damaged UK politics since the 1990s. Over the last few years, there have been a slew of damaging high-profile lobbying stories, including the then Prime Minister not properly declaring interests, and one MP claiming to manipulate the rules to keep hospitality secret.…
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Joint Letter to the UK Prime Minister
The Rt Hon. Keir Starmer MP Prime Minister and Leader of the Labour Party Sent by email 9th July 2024 Dear Prime Minister Re: Open government can rebuild trust, support reforms, and drive efficiency. Our heartfelt congratulations on your appointment as Prime Minister. Your leadership comes at a pivotal time. We, as civil society…
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Joint Letter to the UK Prime Minister
The Rt Hon. Keir Starmer MP Prime Minister and Leader of the Labour Party Sent by email 9th July 2024 Dear Prime Minister Re: Open government can rebuild trust, support reforms, and drive efficiency. Our heartfelt congratulations on your appointment as Prime Minister. Your leadership comes at a pivotal time. We, as civil…
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BLOG | Dear next government, there is one way to rebuild trust… and it already exists | Kevin Keith
But the real question may be whether politicians trust us. In the first episode of Yes Minister in 1980, newly appointed Minister Jim Hacker sought to introduce a policy of Open Government to ‘take the nation into our confidence.’ He failed, of course, with his artful Permanent Secretary, Sir Humphrey musing that citizens have a…
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UK GENERAL ELECTION & OPEN GOVERNMENT
A public meeting for representatives of civil society organisations to discuss the recently called UK General Election, civil society manifestos, and the possibility of prioritising ‘asks’ and covering wider thematic areas, in addition to Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales, in a combined document. If you would like to attend email [email protected]
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Tim Davies | Exploring future UK open government actions on digital governance (Nairobi workshop)
I recently attended a workshop on governing new and emerging digital technologies, organised by the Open Government Partnership, in Nairobi, Kenya. Over the first 1.5 days we had the great privilege to hear from civil society and government presenters from across 11 countries about current digital governance actions, agendas and challenges.Then our focus turned to…
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Dr Ben Worthy | Is the UK More open?
From one point of view, the UK has been through an openness revolution. We take all this data for granted in 2024 but it’s important to remember what a difference it makes. If you wanted to find out, it was quite difficult. To take a very basic measure of democracy, if you wanted to find…
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