Using Blogs to Create Public Policy

A minister in the Australian government has suggested using Web 2.0 applications to help set federal policies, according to an article in the Brisbane Times.

Special Minister of State Gary Nairn envisions the Australian government setting up blogs in which citizens and community groups could comment on proposed public policies. The newspaper quotes Nairn:

Instead of going through the long and iterative process of drafting papers, issuing them to community groups and waiting for feedback, we could be doing this online through blog sites. ... There are a lot of risks but it would be silly not to do it. This is the way the younger generation interacts. A problem the political process has had for a long time is how to get people engaged. Web 2.0 could help rectify the situation, which is exciting, because further engagement builds education.

Nairn gave no timetable in which to establish the blogs and admits the government does not yet have the technology to offer the service.