An environment and incentives should be established for a significant lowering of the cost base of Tomorrow’s Public Services, in which information is handled more efficiently and effectively and technology is deployed explicitly to lower service costs.
There should be a renewed focus on reformed, collaborative and innovative, locally delivered public services - public services will deliver more, better and for less when services are led, managed and resourced locally, with citizens and front-line staff and a full spectrum of service providers – public, third and private sectors – given a stronger voice, empowered by information and technology.
IT should be fully integrated into political, economic, social, legal and environmental strategic planning. This includes state intervention at the local level where the market fails (e.g. reach of broadband to certain geographies and communities), transforming local public services using IT and exploiting IT to maintain competitive advantage (across a spectrum extending from local communities to international).
The full spectrum of local government interactions with citizens, communities and businesses should be ITenabled, in order to build an open and fully-functioning democracy and, ultimately, better decision-making and cost saving.