Discretionary expectations - all agencies

Based on the E-government Strategy (adoption of which is mandatory), the following discretionary expectations regarding e-government include:

Government Shared Network (GSN). To meet the needs of the Shared Services Network and the Government Wide Area Network, the Cabinet Business Committee, on 27 June 2005 agreed that:

• the SSC should oversee the initial implementation of the GSN, and continue to secure support from agencies to participate in individual services;
• agencies will not be mandated to use the GSN, but departments are required, and other government agencies will be invited, to formally evaluate the use of the GSN when their network supply contracts are re-negotiated.
• It was noted that the GSN makes a valuable contribution to the Digital Strategy and provides operational foundations for improvements in the effectiveness of government. The GSN will delivery benefits to individual agencies and government, in the areas of security, connection and cost-efficiency. 

In June 2006, the Cabinet Committee on Government Expenditure and Administration noted that:

• the Government Communications Security Bureau strongly endorses the GSN as a cost effective means to promote high, consistent, and focussed security standards across departments;
• the Ministry of Economic Development endorses the GSN as an important element in the communications portion of the Digital Strategy and a supporting initiative for the objectives of the recently announced reforms of the telecommunications sector.

All-of-government web portal: agencies will give effect to the ‘Portal Charter’, put in place between the Commissioner and chief executives in 2002.

• refer: newzealand.govt.nz

SEE PKI: agencies should use the SEE PKI policy if deploying digital certificates for internal use.

• refer: http://www.e-government.govt.nz/see/pki/index.asp

SEEMail: agencies should implement SEE Mail.

• refer: www.e.govt.nz/services/see/

Shared Workspace is a suite of tools and processes for sharing and working online between agencies and their partners outside government. It uses tools that people are familiar with and can be used from wherever you are located. A common, secure platform to support these tools is operated by the State Services Commission on behalf of agencies. Shared Workspace:

• supports interagency collaboration
• supports groups sharing work in progress
• is a way to share information resources of value to the whole state sector
• provides valuable experience in using online collaboration tools
• refer: www.e.govt.nz/services/workspace/

Trusted Computing: In November 2003, the E-government Unit issued advice to agencies to not enable Digital Rights Management (DRM) features of recently available software called “information rights management” which is part of Microsoft Server 2003 and Office 2003. The reasons for this advice are still relevant now, and this advice is reconfirmed.

e-Awareness information sharing on the e-initiatives wiki: This supports collaboration and the collective interest through information sharing and provides a basis for reporting on progress in achieving e-government.

Governance of All-of-Government ICT Operations: The Cabinet Business Committee, on 27 June 2005 agreed that the governance framework for all-of-government ICT operations should include:

• the establishment of an advisory body to the Deputy Commisioner ICT of the SSC as the steward of the all-of-government operations, i.e. setting directions and policies;

• the custodian ship of the operational activities, i.e. day-to-day management, being undertaken by the All-of-Government Operations Unit of the ICT Branch of the SSC.