Kate Hawkesby: Clare Curran - the not so open former Open Government minister

COMMENT:So the former Minister for Open Government and Digital Services turns out, in an ironic twist, to have not been that open in regards her own digital services.

You couldn't make this stuff up. It would appear now that the most open thing Clare Curran has done is resign.

The news yesterday, if you haven't grabbed the popcorn already, is that there is more to the Curran saga than first thought.

It appears now, she says, that it's possible, that more emails between her and Derek Handley may have been exchanged.

From her personal Gmail account no less.
Oh dear.

To her credit, when she was fired from Cabinet she released a chain of emails, texts and direct Twitter messages between her and Handley.

But one of the emails from Handley now indicates other emails may have been exchanged.

Further fogging things on this open and digital communications front is how Handley got access to the minister's mobile phone number, and how he got instructions on how to gain access to the Beehive after hours for the now career-ending 'secret meeting'.

Curran was talking to social entrepreneur Derek Handley about a role as NZ's chief technology officer.

The second secret meeting the Minister for Open Government had conducted.
Clare Curran is now apparently archiving all her Gmail messages related to ministerial matters and these will in time of course be discoverable under the Official Information Act.

But, and here's the big but, it is likely, she says, that some emails may be redacted to protect Handley's privacy, if they don't relate to the job application itself.

Here's the worry. Does the Government redact email contents the same way it provides transcripts to bloggers?

In other words, by editing it as it suits them? The fact they've flagged already that emails may be redacted should tell us all we need to know.

The process of open government, by the former minister for open government, regards digital communications, by the former minister for digital services, has been anything but digitally competent - or indeed even remotely open.