The Open Learning Centre

28/01/09: A spate of on-line news articles have reported on the statement on Tuesday by the Conservative Party's shadow chancellor, George Osborne, that: Government departments have failed to capitalise on the software as a resource, even though reports from its agencies have looked at the feasibility of open source and recommended its use.

The statement and it's repercussions have been covered in some depth by such august bodies as The BBC, ZDNet and Computer World.

Mr Osborne said: The Conservative Party is looking to the future. We have led the debate on using open source software in government, and I'm delighted that Dr Mark Thompson has come forward with these detailed recommendations.

The report went on to say that savings would come not just from reduced licensing costs, but importantly by freeing government bodies from long-term, monopoly supply situations.

Many commentators are explaining the current UK Government's lack of Open Source usage down to either plain ignorance or blind-faith in Microsoft and other proprietary vendors' marketing hyperbole. In comparison to the take up of FOSS across Europe and further afield, the UK has been falling further and further behind. And now a new United States Administration is also calling for further use of FOSS in Government and is commissioning leading experts to report on the best way to introduce more into their public bodies, the pressure can only increase on the Labour party to "'Wise-Up".