Comments on: Article: A Prime Minister’s conversion to openness http://heatherbrooke.org/2009/article-browns-conversion-to-openness/ Heather Brooke is an award-winning writer, journalist and activist Wed, 08 Sep 2010 21:08:24 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: Dr David Lowry http://heatherbrooke.org/2009/article-browns-conversion-to-openness/comment-page-1/#comment-2200 Dr David Lowry Thu, 11 Jun 2009 17:43:29 +0000 http://www.yrtk.org/?p=854#comment-2200 Heather I share your cynicism. FYI, the Parliamentary table office struck out part of the PQ below, which wanted to ask whether the FOIA 2000 would apply to these councils! cheers David Written Questions for Answer on Thursday 11 June 2009 297 Mr Dai Davies (Blaenau Gwent): To ask the Prime Minister, by what means the proceedings of the (a) democratic renewal council and (b) domestic policy council will be reported to the House; and what estimate has been made of the administrative cost of each of the councils in the next 12 months. (279467 Heather
I share your cynicism. FYI, the Parliamentary table office struck out part of the PQ below, which wanted to ask whether the FOIA 2000 would apply to these councils!
cheers
David

Written Questions for Answer on Thursday 11 June 2009

297
Mr Dai Davies (Blaenau Gwent): To ask the Prime Minister, by what means the proceedings of the (a) democratic renewal council and (b) domestic policy council will be reported to the House; and what estimate has been made of the administrative cost of each of the councils in the next 12 months. (279467

]]> By: Conrad http://heatherbrooke.org/2009/article-browns-conversion-to-openness/comment-page-1/#comment-2199 Conrad Thu, 11 Jun 2009 13:48:13 +0000 http://www.yrtk.org/?p=854#comment-2199 I remember listening to a speech Brown made in Sheffield in 2007, where he made a point to talk about "Open Government". He made some ridiculous generalisation about restriction on public political debates in the US (grouped, pre-approved questions, etc.), and then proceeded to engage in an audience debate that had even more limitations than the fictional US debates he had just decried! I found my blog post on the topic, here: http://www.spalpeen.co.uk/2007/05/30/gordon-brown-and-open-government/ Funny you recalled Yes, Minister here - I wrote the same in that post from 2007. Lots of talking the talk, and not much walking the walk. Putting aside any talk of whether or not he should be leader, Brown and Co.'s record on "transparency" is laughable at best. I remember listening to a speech Brown made in Sheffield in 2007, where he made a point to talk about “Open Government”. He made some ridiculous generalisation about restriction on public political debates in the US (grouped, pre-approved questions, etc.), and then proceeded to engage in an audience debate that had even more limitations than the fictional US debates he had just decried!

I found my blog post on the topic, here: http://www.spalpeen.co.uk/2007/05/30/gordon-brown-and-open-government/ Funny you recalled Yes, Minister here – I wrote the same in that post from 2007.

Lots of talking the talk, and not much walking the walk. Putting aside any talk of whether or not he should be leader, Brown and Co.’s record on “transparency” is laughable at best.

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