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In a drive to improve efficiency and to increase user participation, local authorities have been set eGovernment targets and priorities by central Government. However, limited resources, conflicting priorities and internal political pressure have resulted in a lack of focus when it comes to implementing such changes and progress towards achieving e-Government has a) been slower than expected and b) had less impact than anticipated.
Research undertaken at Brunel broadened knowledge of e-Government and delivered these benefits:
The research created a body of knowledge that enabled delivery of novel and effective change and is contributing to making the UK a world leader on e-Government.
The 2000 Freedom of Information Act was the subject of post-legislative scrutiny by the Ministry of Justice and the Commons Justice Committee in 2011 and 2012. Both the Ministry and the Justice Committee drew heavily on work by Professor Robert Hazell and colleagues in the Constitution Unit at UCL. The Unit developed the conceptual approach to evaluate the impact of FOI, and provided much of the evidence base. The evidence contributed to the decision that, despite pressure from senior political and Whitehall figures, the Act would not be significantly amended.
Research conducted in 2006-13 on the role of third sector organisations (TSOs) in delivering public services in Scotland has shaped public policy, improved the management/impact of TSOs in delivering public services, and influenced public opinion on the role of TSOs. This has been achieved through research for the Scottish Government and the ESRC, input into the Christie Commission on public services reform, and by affecting the management of TSOs in Scotland through training events and through Osborne's role as Vice-Chair of the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO). It has also had an international impact, including in Denmark and Australia.
One strand of Griffiths' academic work has looked at public service reform. This research has influenced a variety of think tank publications examining reform strategies in health, education and social care. In particular, it has shaped debates on citizenship, choice in public services, the `coproduction' of services between citizen and state, and greater professional autonomy. Both the New Labour Government and the Coalition have moved policy in this direction. Griffiths' contributions have been significant enough to be discussed by Cabinet Ministers and senior opposition politicians, special advisers, trade union groups and in local government. His latest edited book in this area is currently the subject of an ongoing series of debates between academics and policymakers, including government ministers, hosted by the Royal Society and Arts and sponsored by the ESRC.
Robin Mansell's research has impacted on government policy and corporate strategy in the areas of copyright and the Internet, investment in broadband networks, and arrangements for achieving network security and individual privacy protection. These are all key components of what has come to be known as information society policy. Her work has challenged policy makers to respond to the legitimate interests of citizens as well as to those of government and corporate stakeholders. These impacts are particularly visible in shifts in information society policy at the international level to include greater attention to citizen interests and in national policy debates about the future of copyright and business and government responses to the need for secure networks that also protect citizens' privacy.
Because corruption involves illegal activities of public officials, data about the scale and objects of bribery is not readily available. Without such evidence, policymakers are handicapped in identifying points for effective intervention. Rose's survey research on post-Communist countries developed innovative measures to monitor the payment of bribes by citizens for public services. Transparency International (TI) is the world's leading non-governmental organisation campaigning against corruption, and it has incorporated the survey methodology in its key research tool, the Global Corruption Barometer (GCB). From 2008 to 2013 Transparency International has conducted three major rounds of Global Corruption Barometer surveys that interviewed upwards of 450,000 people in more than 110 countries on every continent. Results have been disseminated worldwide through the 90 national chapters of Transparency International. Rose's expertise in sampling has also been used to improve value-for-money expenditure on GCB surveys in the many developing countries it covers.
While indexes exist that measure the maturity of the provision of eGovernment services from the government perspective (e.g. UN eGovernment Development Index, http://unpan3.un.org/egovkb/global_reports/12report.htm), there are no reliable standards that incorporate the citizen perspective into benchmarking of government effectiveness. Brunel research has included both government and citizen assessments and, through a more holistic approach to eGovernment evaluation, has helped Turkey and other governments to improve their e-government services.
EU funded CEES (Citizen-Oriented Evaluation of e-government Services) project delivered a new evaluation model, called COBRA (Cost, Opportunity, Benefit, Risk Analysis), for benchmarking e-government services from the citizens' perspective. CEES led to COBRA's adoption by Turksat, the Turkish central e-government service provider which has 12 million citizen users — leading to e-government service improvement and more favourable citizen attitudes. E-government service providers such as ictQATAR and OMSAR (Office of the Minister of State for Administrative Reform) have adopted the COBRA framework to evaluate and improve their e-government services in Qatar and Lebanon respectively. COBRA has also been used in UK and Estonia leading to similar outcomes.
This research outcome enabled the launch of a new project, called I-MEET, that is extending the COBRA framework to include governments' perspectives and is being applied to Qatar, Lebanon and the UK.
Thompson is recognised as a pioneer of Open Innovation thinking within the UK public sector. He has influenced a major shift in thinking in ICT-driven public service design towards open innovation, with demonstrable impact on public and private sector business models. His 2009 paper for George Osborne, The `Thompson Report', Open Source and Open Standards (Ref 1), launched a seismic change in thinking by government policy-makers, public servants, and private sector service providers. Thompson became a Cabinet Office advisor in 2011, and continues to provide critique and contribution to parliamentary reports and policy documents across government and industry, and support implementation within local government.
Created in 2001, `Landscapes of Secrecy' constitutes a programme of research into secret service that has informed security and intelligence practitioners, shaped public policy debate and enhanced public awareness and attitudes. The focus has been official secrecy: how it is achieved; when it is appropriate; and how it is weighed against the right of democratic citizens to know about policies conducted in their name. Impact on key Whitehall users (Ministry of Defence, Serious Organised Crime Agency and Defence Advisory-Notice Committee) has been secured via workshops, policy-briefs and input into institutional design and training. Cultural and societal impact has been realised with internationally reviewed bestselling books, radio and television documentaries and a public exhibition in Washington DC.
Professor Patrick Dunleavy and Dr Joachim Wehner have led research on improving public budgeting and performance auditing. This research has transformed the quality and coverage of OECD data, with a direct impact on processes of peer learning across 34 OECD member states as well as specific reforms. Later work for the United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID) created the first dataset on government budgeting practices across Africa, which is a valuable tool for guiding budgetary reform on the continent. In addition, the research into performance audit practice has underpinned work with the European Court of Auditors to develop research methods in `value for money' (VFM) studies. This work has improved financial reporting to the European Parliament and wider professional and public audiences.