Addressing the decline of public trust in government.
Public trust in Australian institutions – government, business, charities and the media, has been on the decline for many years, according to the 2020 Elderman Index of Trust. Most recently, and before the 2019 Federal election, a Roy Morgan poll highlighted ‘loss of trust in major political parties and politicians’ as a top issue for Australians voting.
Distrust has manifested in the rise of minor parties and ‘gorilla style protesting’ and is predicted to increase until governments, across the political spectrum, change their approach to transparency and community engagement. The data from each of the polls, demonstrates the Australian community feel they have little impact on decision making, most notably in the use of their taxes.
The intricate nature of modern democracy is making decisions at all levels within society more complex. While vast amounts of data exist in the public domain, assembling these into meaningful insights for decision making is an arduous task. The task of those in elected public office and public servants is becoming harder. The disconnect continues to rise, and good work by political figures and public servants is more often than not overshadowed by sound bite media rather than facts.
The inability of the public sector to communicate their message and stand out from the crowd (or their political party) is stifling public value creation. Many talented and passionate people are choosing not to be in public life because they are unable to achieve measurable change.
In the age of digital convenience, demand for consumer-centric services grows, yet it has never been harder to use the vast amounts of data in the public sector to bridge the growing gap of distrust.
The issue.
While there is always a risk that disclosure of information might lead to criticism or embarrassment, this should not deter leaders from acting with authenticity. While data and the insights will provide easy stock for journalists to make a running commentary on the government, there is clear evidence from the United States, that media excitement rapidly diminishes as the community learns to trust the data presented.
The public does not expect that politicians are dealing with daily operational procedures. They understand that these are decisions made at operational levels. The public will, however, hold the Minister accountable for:
1. Denying that there is a problem when one exists; or
2. Failing to act once a problem is identified.
Data from multiple surveys have demonstrated that politicians need to show that they are on the side of the public, not the institution of government. A transparent government allows politicians to hold the agencies of government accountable and change the narrative with the community.
Opportunity.
The use of Open Data and associated insight tools provides an opportunity for politicians to counter the increase in distrust. A fresh approach to transparency can demonstrably show the public that they are putting the interests of the community ahead of their interests, and those of the institutions they govern.
By using tools and systems that aid transparency, a government can increase trust by:
1. Rapidly marry narrative and data in a way that communicates clearly to the public on a variety of topics,
2. Using Open Data to allow the public to change their behaviour or their expectations,
3. Solicit feedback and close the loop with the community in a dynamic way,
4. Show the community how they influenced the decision-making process,
5. Make insights about government easy to find and,
6. Demonstrate public sector agencies being held to account by political leaders.
Examples:
1. State of California - https://fiscalca.opengov.com/
2. Illinois State Treasurer - http://www.iltreasurervault.com/
3. Transparent Idaho - https://transparent.idaho.gov
4. Santa Monica https://stories.opengov.com/cloudcity/published/4KmO1BTty
5. City of Boston - https://data.boston.gov/
The approach of Open Government goes beyond Right to Information and traditional Open Data. Such an approach can directly enhance many government priorities and rapidly change the narrative within a community.
[1] https://www.edelman.com/trustbarometer
[2] http://www.roymorgan.com/findings/7966-state-of-the-nation-sotn-politics-election-2019-201905080100