Gov 2.0: Towards a User Generated State?

John Morison

ECEG 2010 17-18 June, Limerick, Ireland

Web 2.0 The new revolution in information – Not new technology but new

end user focus

Three elements: 1.

User generated content (file sharing not portals) 2.

Enhanced creativity and increased interaction (Social networking, ebay, Flickr, Skype, Amazon, RSS, Google / Stumble, YouTube Open source, mashups, twitter, wikis, blogs, Facebook, etc, etc)

3. Qualitatively new levels of information Free availability of public data Re use of “official” data Government in partnership

More

information User-generated sites Mash-ups – sharing data, Personalised government

More

involvement

Partnerships with user-led communities using and re-using official information The semantic web   Linking and mapping information in new apps A significant move away from Government portals simply pushing out information and enabling relatively simple transactions

Official Data

(eg. The Places Database + Analytical Windows)       

Places analytical windows

http://www.places.communities.gov.uk/places

Floor Targets Interactive (FTI)

http://www.fti.communities.gov.uk/fti/

State of the Cities database

http://www.socd.communities.gov.uk/socd

Green Spaces –

(June 2009) Google maps and parks + open spaces register

Community Maps: Digital and Social Geographies of Great Britain

http://www.gps.communities.gov.uk/communitymaps

Data4nr.net - Data for Neighbourhoods and Regeneration

http://www.data4nr.net/introduction/

Indices of Multiple Deprivation

http://www.imd.communities.gov.uk/

Informal uses…

Web 2.0 Gov 2.0

The Power of information and Web 2.0 approaches to:  re-invigorate electoral politics and build platform for participatory politics  re-engineer public services Re inventing the “state” and idea of the “public”

1. Improving democracy: Re-engagement with formal politics  Voter turn-out less than 60%  Membership of political parties less than 25% of level in 1960s But … 60% express “an interest” in politics; 70% willing to sign a petition; 20% have boycotted products … Harness energy of Web 2.0-style social networking + shopping for participatory government

What is being done to develop democracy?

Democratic innovations Central Government – citizen/consumer Local Government – consumer/citizen e-government – e-citizen/participant

Gimmicks .... and more ....

• On-line questioning of PM, e-zines, e petitions • e-panels, e-juries etc • Sustainable Communities Acts 2007 and 2010 • Local Gov and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 “duty to involve”

Large Scale – e.g. Teeme ara! Minu Eesti

Small scale – e.g. collaborative community planning

Participatory Budgeting (and e participatory budgeting)   Information to support priority decision-making Local Authorities and neighbourhoods  ICT supported £10 m since 2004 (2-3% annually)

e-consultations

UK example - Dangerous dogs

A controlled space for limited and managed interaction?

Online versions of paper consultations

Added value from ICT?

Democratic sufficiency?

2. Public Services and the Modernisation of Government – a continuing phenomenon

a style

of government aimed at reinvigorating public services Introducing new concepts of efficiency including elements of private sector efficiency, but without ceding control to the same extent as with earlier versions of privatisation to ensure that the public sector will operate in a way that is “as efficient, dynamic and effective as anything in the private sector” a

philosophy

of government as well as a

means

of government

Re-engineering Public Services

The Big Society..... ?

Public services and Citizens

The individualisation / personalisation of services The construction of ideas of communities, consumers, enterprising and prudential selves, Active, responsible, informed and engaged citizens

Gov 2.0 and services   “equipping people with far better, richer information “ “using new technology to foster dialogue about public services with citizens and civil servants” User-focused, interactive Personal budgets for health and social care “a smarter, more strategic state”

Information-rich and transparent

Information for consumer style choice Performance measured against the new set of 198 National Indicators

Citizen-led information for choice

Beyond the consumer state to the user-generated state?

 The interactive state  The active, consulted, empowered citizen / consumer • • • • •  control with user of services personalised participatory interactive on demand transparent  Government 2.0

How do we interpret this?

   Who is the legal subject summoned up by these discourses? How different from the classical “man of law” as equal, rational, rights bearing, autonomous

homo juridicus?

How can these ideas of citizenship be contested?

What understanding of power, the state and democracy is being invoked to direct these strategies?

Governmentality approaches (based on the writings of M. Foucault) give more complex view of the proliferation of governmental technologies and subjects What is left of our idea of the “public”?

(public space, public interest, public service etc.) How can counter publics emerge?

The choosing citizen /consumer   Public services replicating idea of

choice

providers from private sector of competing But not only about “exiting the market” and punishing poor providers.

 Passing control back to service users. I.e. private law customer rights v. public law ideas of

control

in citizen-centred service 

Individualised

services ( e.g. individual budgets for health, not health budgets) ….

The enhanced consumer

The (marginally) enhanced consumer

The failed consumer

The contributing citizen

University education Health care + dentistry Road use

The contributing citizen surrendering rights

The watched and controlled citizen

The responsible citizen

Self-governing and prudent Risk managing Insured

The “consulted” citizen / consumer

“participatory de-politicisation”

How do we contest these ideas of citizenship?

Does interaction + user generation + information + participation = democracy?

The “new model citizen” v. the “defiant citizen”

Gov 2.0 requires Citizen 2.0

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