What Immigration did with just $1m and open source software

[Flashback]

What Immigration did with just $1m and open source software - Software - News - iTnews.com.au

The Department of Immigration has showed what a cash-strapped government agency can do with just $1 million, some open source software, and a bit of free-thinking.Speaking in at the Technology in Government forum in Canberra yesterday, the Department's chief risk officer Gavin McCairns explained how his team has rolled an application based on the 'R' language into production to filter through millions of incoming visitors to Australia every year.

 

[TonyHancock]

...but what they don't tell you is that the tea and biscuits contract was $1.2 billion* for the department.


* For the more literal the tea and biscuit spend was probably not $1.2 billion, this was a feeble attempt to extract humour from the perception that government bodies are a little removed from the real world and are likely to use public funding freely with limited controls. The writer of this post in no way endorses that view, much, but is making a desperate, some might say feeble, attempt at humour. I am certain some members will be able to provide the exact figure for spend on tea and biscuits....whether they actually know it or not.

 

[dfcatch]

TonyHancock I am somewhat reliably informed by an uninformed unnamed top secret source that the $1.2 billion Tea & Biscuits fund actually only covers the Chai Latte.

I am led to understand that the English Breakfast portion of funding is in excess to that quoted.

It's all small change though, as I'm also led to believe that the Soy Decaf Latte bill for the Climate Change Authority is at least twice the figure you have quoted.

 

[medhead]

And the budget for twists of lemon?

 

[dfcatch]

And the budget for twists of lemon?

The FOI request was denied as that information is apparently "classified for reasons of national security".

 

[medhead]

The FOI request was denied as that information is apparently "classified for reasons of national security".

An operational matter?

 

[medhead]

On topic. I have a friend in another commonwealth department who has been using open source stuff for work for a long time.