Local authority IT managers have welcomed the Government's official
endorsement of open source software for use in the UK's public
sector.
Last week the Cabinet Office published a report entitled Open
Source Software: Use Within UK Government, which outlined the
Government's plans to consider open source alongside proprietary
software products for future IT procurement.
Joe Daniels, community information manager at Knowsley Metropolitan
Borough Council, said, "Anything that can make IT cheaper, more
secure and more standard has got to be beneficial."
Roy Cosway, corporate IT services manager at Cornwall County
Council, one of the Government's Pathfinder local authorities,
said, "In local government we will see the benefits [of open
source], such as cost reductions and standardisation."
However, Cosway warned that any major roll-out of open source
software will need to be carefully regulated by a
government-approved standards body. "We have to ensure that we are
using the same version of open source," he said.
The report said, "UK government will seek to avoid lock-in to
proprietary IT products and services," and underlined the fact that
future contracts will be awarded on a value-for-money basis.
The statement comes after months of wrangling between the
Government and Microsoft prior to the announcement earlier this
year of a public sector-wide deal to use software from Microsoft,
IBM/Lotus and Sun Microsystems.
Security was highlighted as a key benefit of open source in the
report, which said properly configured open source software can be
at least as secure as proprietary systems. It also pointed out that
open source is subject to fewer Internet-based attacks.
Analysts described the Government's announcement as a step in the
right direction. Mike Davis, senior research analyst at Butler
Group and a former public sector IT manager, said, "Having a level
playing field for open source software has to be a good thing."
Davis acknowledged that open source could be a cost-effective
option for the public sector and highlighted the importance of
increased choice for users. "There will be cost reductions,
although not being dependent on a particular manufacturer's
hardware and software will be more important," he said.