Scotland OGP ActionPlan 2018

About this planning page
This planning page has been set up by Scotland's Open Government Network and the Scottish Government to openly plan the process for developing Scotland's second Open Government Action Plan. It has been set up to collaboratively build the engagement process and to document the decisions and actions that are taken. More details about the next action plan can be found below.

How it works
Both the network and Scottish Government are working together to build a comprehensive plan to help us deliver the next action plan. The Network's Coordinator (Paul Bradley) and equivalent at the Scottish Government (Emma Harvey) are steering the process and are liaising with Government colleagues and members of Scotland's OpenGov Network (Action Plan Sub-group) to build the plan. All information from planning meetings, engagement outputs and the overall process will be published here.

How to contribute
We have selected this open source platform with you in mind! Whilst the basics have already been mapped out on this page, anyone can suggest additions or changes to our engagement process by simply editing a section. We encourage you to do so, and you can submit edits anonymously or if you would like us to get in touch you can add your name after your edit and join our online forum.

About Scotland's Open Government Partnership (OGP) Action Plan 2018 - 2020
This is part of Scotland's promise as a member of the Open Government Partnership (OGP), to work with citizens and civil society to implement open government reforms. Last year, Scotland became part of the Pioneer Tier of the Open Government Partnership, a pilot program consisting of 15 local governments with action plans to open up government throughout 2017. As the 2017 plan comes to an end (see more here), we are beginning to develop and launch the 2018-2020 open government action plan.

What it's about
Open government is the simple but powerful idea that governments and institutions work better for citizens when they are transparent, engaging and accountable. The international Open Government Partnership puts this into practice by supporting member governments to develop concrete commitments in partnership with civil society which aim to improve how people see, understand and are able to influence decisions which affect them. These commitments form 2 year action plans, which are monitored and independently assessed.

Open government has three parts: Done well, open government reforms can transform the relationship between people and their governments and institutions, ensuring that they are properly responsive to citizens, while improving their efficiency and effectiveness, preventing abuses of power and building trust.
 * 1) Transparency – opening up of governmentinformation data and  on areas such as public spending, govment contracts, lobbying activity, the development and impact of policy, and public service performance.
 * 2) Particrt for a strong and independent civil society, the involvement of citizens and other stakeholders in decision making processes, and protection for whistleblowers and others who highlight waste, negligence or corruption in government.
 * 3) Accountability – rules, laws and mechanisms that ensure government listens, learns, responds and changes when it needs to.

How it works
Civil Society and the Scottish Government will co-create the 2018-2020 National Action Plan (NAP). The action plan is at the core of Scotland's participation in OGP and should contain between three to five commitments. It should be the product of a participatory process which enables people to help develop effective commitments that matter to them.

Successful OGP action plans focus on significant national priorities and ambitious reforms; are relevant to the values of transparency, accountability, and public participation; and contain specific, time-bound, and measurable commitments. Working with the Scottish Government, the network is working to develop the best possible process for the 2018 – 2020 OGP Action Plan to be delivered in an open, transparent and inclusive way, which delivers effective change.

Who can get involved
You do not need to be an expert – we are looking for interested and empassioned citizens, community groups and civil society organisations who want to have a say and offer their ideas on how government at a local, regional and national level could be done better and in a more open way. That applies for anyone interested in supporting the process of creating the action plan or contributing to the content.

Key details
Leads: Paul Bradley (Scot OGN) and Emma Harvey (Scottish Government)

Start date: 10th January 2018 | Completion date: 1st September 2018

Government team involved: Ingage | Network team involved: Action Plan Collaboration Sub-group

Purpose of Engagement: To involve and collaborate with Scotland’s civil society and public to develop commitments to be considered for inclusion in Scotland’s second Open Government Action Plan

Engagement objectives
1.   To build trust in Government and Institutions through working together to improve public services.

2.   Raise awareness of what open government objectives are, of Scotland’s place in the Open Government Partnership and of Scotland’s Open Government Network.

3.  Develop Scotland’s second Open Government Action Plan in collaboration between Scottish Government and Scottish Civil Society

4.   Increase opportunities for members of Scotland’s Open Government Network to shape open government action plans.

5.  Reach out to groups identified to be either interested in open government or the issues being discussed

 Ways of Working (needs developed collaboratively)  2.  Ensure that all those participating understand what impact their contributions have made.
 * 1) All work to be carried out in an open and transparent manner.
 * 2) Respect all contributions and contributors, valuing diversity and supporting involvement from a diverse range of voices.

OGP in Scotland timeline
Formal action plan deadline: 31 August 2018

Action plan delivery window: SN should deliver their SNAP within a three  month period from June 30th to September 30, 2018

Action plan implementation: Regardless of when the SNAP is delivered, SNAP  implementation would end on 31 August 2020

Plan contents: 3 to 5 commitments limit per action plan

2017 action plan: The final IRM End of Term Report analysing the success of Scotland’s first open government action plan will be published in March 2018.

Available channels
There are a number of communication channels we will use to ensure that appropriate groups and individuals are receiving the right information at the right time. Below is the table of planned activity that will be delivered. This maps the minimum outputs that will be delivered. This is a working document and will be populated as events, campaigns and activity is timetabled.

Stakeholders
In development

The value of OGP Scotland
What frustrates people about government?

What would people like to see from government?

What are the features of open government action plan that reduce these frustrations and maximise what people would like to see from government?

What specific benefits does the action plan bring?

What examples and experiences are there that support this narrative?

Why should people get involved and care?

Past meeting notes
Draft Scottish Commitments for the UK National Action Plan (January 2016)

Scottish Civil Society Network workshop notes (April 2016)

Scottish Civil Society Network workshop notes (September 2016)

Scottish Civil Society Network workshop notes (April 2017)

Scottish Civil Society Network workshop notes (June 2017)

Scottish Civil Society Network workshop notes (November 2017)

Past mapping exercise
Enabling open government

Before we can act to create a more open government in Scotland, we need to work out the mechanism we can use to put our ideas into action.

Enabling commitments need to be short, sharp and realistic. Here are the proposals that have already been discussed: Using open government
 * 1) Commit to developing a framework to link together the Scottish Action plan for human rights, the Scottish Government's National Performance Framework and the UN Sustainable Development Goals so we can understand our international obligations and our performance.
 * 2) Commit to improving financial information and developing a framework for increasing transparency in the process of financial decisions making
 * 3) Commit to greater citizen participation – where people can shape their public services, collectively have more control over their lives and get involved in a movement to secure greater openness in decisions that affect them.
 * 4) Commit to implementing the Fairer Scotland action plan founded on dignity and respect to all people
 * 5) Commit to work in partnership with stakeholders and citizens to make it possible for 1% of local council budgets to be decided deliberatively by the people directly affected through participatory budgeting

These are the sort of actions we can take using an open government where we can make a real difference in Scotland. The kinds of actions we may want to include in a future plan.

The list below follows the framework set by the UN Sustainable Development Goals to give an international perspective and links to issues that affect our everyday lives.