Changes include power to collect children’s data without parental consent.
Australia is pushing legislation to expand the types and amount of biometric data it can collect at immigration checkpoints.
The new bill introduced this month would give the Department of Immigration and Border Protection power to collect more data, including from minors, when the need arises because the country faces higher terrorism-related risks.
Read more: Australia to collect more biometric data at airports
The Australian federal government is joining up with state governments to ensure that public datasets are available on the national portal.
This month, it announced that South Australian open data will be available on the national portal, while the state portal will also provide access to national datasets.
Read more: Australia joins up state and federal open government initiatives
Study partnership announced by Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull.
The Australian Government will launch a “comprehensive” survey to assess which datasets are most valuable to businesses and researchers, Malcolm Turnbull, Australian Communications Minister has announced this week.
In partnership with New York University’s GovLab, the federal government will look at organisations that use public datasets “to generate new business, develop new products and services or create social value,” he said.
Read more: Australia to set method for valuing open datasets
Isn’t it time to join up central government systems with local government?
Australia has been a dynamo of digital announcements over the past month, but what’s most radical is how it offering its services across central and local government.
This move is a new approach for digital services - dubbed ‘Government as a Platform’ - and is set to become an important trend in e-government.
GovCMS hosting plans range from US$8097 to US$108,003, with larger packages available on request.
Australia has made a web site hosting platform, govCMS, available to all agencies, John Sheridan, Government Chief Technology Officer announced.
“The release of the govCMS website today marks the availability of govCMS to all government entities to create and manage cost effective websites, based on best practice, that are compliant with Australian Government standards,” Sheridan wrote in a blog post.
Read more: Australia’s whole-of-government web platform available to all agencies