The simple but effective idea of harnessing the power of mass collaboration has informed many of our plans for government. You can see that in our pledge to publish government data and spending online, so that tech-savvy citizens can mash up the data in useful ways to help make public services more transparent. And you can see that in our proposal to offer a prize for building an innovative government website.
But we don’t have to wait for the election to be given a chance to apply these principles.
Tomorrow is Budget day. Yes, it’s that time of year when the nation plays a giant game of hide and seek with the plans for our economy. Usually, it’s a case of hundreds of civil servants doing the hiding – and a handful of party researchers and journalists doing the seeking. This year, an election year, will be no different. It’s time to level the playing field.
So in the spirit of mass collaboration, we are going to crowdsource our response to the Budget and we need your help in doing just that. We will be publishing it online in an easy-to-read format (not like the enormous PDF documents so beloved of the Treasury) as soon as possible after its release, so if you check back tomorrow afternoon you will be able to start getting past the flashy headlines to dig through the small print.
Sadly, this will all too likely be a brazenly electioneering Budget with most of the painful elements hidden away far from sight so it is more important than ever for us to harness the talent, expertise and savvy of the Great British Public to shed some light on the 2010 Budget.
UPDATE – the site is now live at http://www.yourbudgetresponse.com
( 24 comments ) Tags: budget, crowdsourcing, Treasury
Comment by Rick Hodge on March 23, 2010 at 6:00 pm
Can I suggest you both help and organise this a bit more..
Add the url references to previous Treasury, NAO reports / forecasts etc you are going to compare the budget with.
List a batch of areas that you would like people to look at, split up into 30 min/1 hour/whatever chunks depending on when you’d like the data back by.
Highlight the tricks you are expecting.
Run a twitter on the day to highlight unexpected statements which you reckon need checking.
We will probably be able to help you a lot better then….
Comment by edwina gillett on March 23, 2010 at 6:20 pm
What a good idea!!
Comment by JP on March 23, 2010 at 6:53 pm
Deficit = tax revenue minus govt spending in any given year
National Debt = accumulation of deficits
Labour give the impression that the National Debt will be halved in 4 years and everything will be rosy. Everyone is taken in by it!
Please can someone get the message across it is just the Deficit, so National Debt will continue to rise
Comment by DaveU on March 23, 2010 at 7:02 pm
Of course the browning street mob are spending our money to give themselves a chance to get re-elected, and they have a good chance of doing so.
Unless the tories start to listen to the electorate. We want a referendum on europe and an end to immigrants taking over our valuable infrastructure. David Cameron and his team are just not listening and you will let the labourites back in. God help us, but you need a kick up the proverbial.
Comment by JP on March 23, 2010 at 8:23 pm
Deficit = difference between tax revenue and government spend
National Debt = accumulation of deficits
Gordon Brown is leading everyone to believe that the ‘Debt’ will be halved in 4 years. It is the deficit that will be halved, the National debt will be even higher in 4 years!
Comment by ashley ward on March 24, 2010 at 6:52 am
Love the idea of Crowd Sourcing!
One simple way to save £m’s is to disband UfI learndirect and its QUANGO partners. UfI itself drains the tax payer of over £100m/annum. The LSC, LSN, et al can quickly add an extra “0″ to that figure.
Having worked inside the so-called “brainchild of G.Brown” I can only tell you of extravagant wastage of our money… too many to mention, but 10 years ago, I tried to warn them, but was ignored.
The sooner we get Gordon, Alastair and the shallow, duplicitous and politcally inept “New Labour” (sic) out, the better.
I earn £50k/year. Not a massive wage, but I appreciate more than some. However, I am penalised by the Tax system for being an “average man”
On the other hand I know of people that have deliberately resigned from their well-paid jobs after having children (with no need to do so), feigned illness, got divorced and live on over £2500 benefits a month – why? Because NL have bribed, made dependent and extending the chav culture of this country.
Forget the Bankers… how much money gets wasted on those unwilling to work, swing the lead and cheat the system. Include the benefits received, the money need to be produced to pay the benefits and the lack of continued investment in the production of UK plc, that they are responsible, it would easily outweigh the short-term loans that RBS, LBG & co have received 9which we will ultimately get back through Corp Tax etc)
Rant Over
Run Gordon… run quickly and hide well, for you have no shame in the calamitous position YOU have put us in. Who needs “experienced” politicians, when the experience we have of them is not a positive one!
Comment by Michael Hurley on March 24, 2010 at 12:04 pm
Who in the Conservative front bench has the guts to ask Brown one simple question as follows.
What was the total price received from the sale of our gold in May 1999 and what would be the value of that gold today?
When you start pressurising Buffoon Brown,then you will guarantee my vote.For God`s sake start attacking!!
Comment by edwina gillett on March 24, 2010 at 1:18 pm
Reduce number of civil servants – that’s where the saving lies. Not just moiving them that will cost on relocation allowances
Comment by edwina gillett on March 24, 2010 at 1:20 pm
A political budget not one to get the country moving! Words, words, words but no action
Comment by Charles Bows on March 24, 2010 at 2:32 pm
Very good idea
Comment by Michael Powell on March 24, 2010 at 3:00 pm
Well, if it’s “branzenly electioneering”, wee Gordie can’t be expecting to win! BUT, you have to get your story across much better. Cleggy still looks as if his policies are far brighter, more radical and more thought-out than anything I’ve heard from you.
I really want you to win. I hate the idea of Brown and his cohorts getting back in – but do you really want that, or are you hoping they’ll get back in and mess things up even more?
Comment by David Seager on March 24, 2010 at 3:48 pm
When will this start? I have already identified a couple of areas of the budget that I believe require further investigation but there is nothing on this site yet.
Comment by Bob on March 24, 2010 at 4:16 pm
Where is the crowdsourcing link, I am icthing to get going?
Comment by Hilary Nicholls on March 24, 2010 at 4:22 pm
My problem with this thieving fraudulent budget is that it is yet another exercise in bribing us with our own money. I look forward to the day when votes stop falling for this
Comment by Franklin Jones on March 24, 2010 at 4:24 pm
It was at least good to see some commitment to pursuing tax evaders. Let’s hope this is done with as much determination as the hunt for benefit fraudsters. Both are a terrible drain on our economy.
Comment by Annie on March 24, 2010 at 4:42 pm
I just listened to David Cameron’s response to the budget. He was really in his element, and if the key messages in his response coud be put across to the electorate, surely they would never vote Gordon Brown back in. Keep the fire going and keep highlighting where we were when labour came in compared to where we are now after 13 years of labour. Absolute Disaster!. We need change, and we need a Conservative Government now (or at least in May)
Comment by Annie on March 24, 2010 at 4:44 pm
escellent response from David Cameron to the budget. Surely the great British public cannot vote for more years of this disasterous government. Keep the fight going
Comment by iamreevo on March 24, 2010 at 6:06 pm
“you will be able to start getting past the flashy headlines to dig through the small print.”
Alas, it’s *all* small print on my screen and I’m unable to increase the font size of these “easy-to-read” Jpegs.
Are you really telling me that it didn’t once cross your mind to consider publishing all these pages of text in a text-based format?
Comment by adrian bonnington on March 24, 2010 at 7:45 pm
People will still be given free social housing and be allowed to remain unemployed out of choice for life – the only work they do is cash in hand. So many single mums actually have the fathers of their children living as lodgers etc
Comment by adrian bonnington on March 24, 2010 at 10:38 pm
Should we stop Foreign Aid until we have paid off our debt. Why do we let people live in social housing and stay unemployed for life getting their rents paid? Why not let companies who manufacture here pay less taxes?
Comment by Toff Hat on March 24, 2010 at 11:00 pm
What an absolutely beezer idea.
Comment by adrian bonnington on March 25, 2010 at 3:36 pm
People who rent and become unemployed get their rents paid straight away which pays off the landlords mortgage in full. Those of us with mortgages only get our interest paid after a 13 week wait. This waiting period stops those of us with mortgages taking short term work – is this fair.
Comment by Christian Logan on May 6, 2010 at 11:37 am
This seems like a good idea.
Comment by Mr C PARKER on May 17, 2010 at 11:23 pm
Our family live in the most beautifull sea side village of lynmouth in Devon.In our road we have 26 houses of which 19 are holiday lets/ second home.To rase income for our new hopefully respected coalitions we think second home owners should be taxed 75% of the profits when sold.(50%) is too lenient!
5 houses in our road are owned by stock brokers and the like sometimes used for one weekend a year.This owners can afford to pay towards restoring the nations financial deficit.