David Cameron, the United Kingdom Prime Minister and the leader of the Conservative party talks about the next age of government terming as the post bureaucratic age. He views this post bureaucratic age of governance as led by the people who have been empowered with information. He explains that the coming age will consist of a government that has reduced power as well as reduced money while the people will be empowered by technology. He suggests that if the new ideas are explored regarding the behavioral economics which depends on the people, then an effective post bureaucratic government would be created. A government determined by the people.
With information revolution the next age of government will be able to create a better policy molded by transparency, choice as well as accountability. This will be possible as people will be in control of the government. With the great innovations and inventions in technology that characterize the present world, information moves amazingly so fast at the lowest possible cost as compared to the past years. This information flow is possible anywhere in the world. David Cameron thinks the government has not taken advantage of this fact, and if it has, then it has done so partly paving way for untapped potential of the information revolution. He compares the past and present time when a century ago sending just 10 words cost 50 US dollars and now it is absolutely free. Allowing full utilization of technology will be cheap and will let the power of the people determine the economy.
Technology will improve on the process of understanding the people for the better. The better understanding of the people will enable the making of better policy as per the will of the people and hence delivering to the people what they consider better for them. This power will only be availed to the people through the information revolutionary, which is characterized by transparency as a result of translucent information. Obtaining and delivering information at the present times has got less expensive and almost free with great easy.
The world has fallen into debts that require to be settled. The government of today is centrally controlled which means it has to spend more causing the debts. If the information richness in the world today was exploited and the people are given the opportunity of be in control, the next era of governance will be able to reduce and even avoid such debts. A government controlled by the people will lead to minimization of government spending and the people will benefit the most. Though behavioral economics where by the people will control what they spend considering the gains and their desires, will see the world proper. The power of the people is all that will make this possible. On the side of the government; it will be able to understand what people want and give them nothing less, nothing more but exactly what they need.
Empowering the people through technology will allow for transparency. Cameron demonstrated this using an example with the internet. A Chicago based internet website-Clear map enables the public to view and get crucial information about crimes within Chicago city. Without the use of internet such information will only be available to the police and with the internet the people too have the power to access the information. This enhances on the public safety as people now can get information about the crime areas. This is the transparency that comes with empowering people with the technology revolution. The technology allows for making of choices as well as accountability. The government is able to account for its actions shaped by the choices made as well as the people. The government is able to get the people’s views and react to give what people want and desire.
However, going as per the behavioral economics as well as understanding the people to better the society may not be that easy to work. Cameron suggests that people can gather information and hence recycle the wastes. Though information people get to the importance and need for recycling. As far as we know the people started practicing the recycling when money was given for doing so. Another example is the conservation of energy. People will be able to save the waste of energy by gathering information from the internet on the reasons for doing so and the best way out. Leaders are able to initiate the people to conserve the energy through passing of information though the technology media.
What makes this point incredible is the fact that psychology has shown that people are uncomfortable delivering more or lesser relative to others. People believe in equality and collaborative humanity. David Cameron’s argument is justifiable and true but it may not be practical. I believe the actual argument is using the information revolution to understand what we know regarding people so that a policy is designed according to how we know the people, and hence an efficient and relevant policy.
Work Cited
Cameron, David. "David Cameron: The next age of government." YouTube. TEDTalks, 2010. Web. 31 May 2013.
