Australian Government Digital White Paper

Is the Australian Government preparing a Digital White Paper? Who is preparing it, how are they consulting interested parties and when is it to be released?

The Australian Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C) issued a discussion paper “Connecting with Confidence, Optimising Australia’s Digital Future”, 15 September 2011, with the aim of releasing a policy white paper in mid 2012. The Australian Computer Society assisted PM&C with consultations, including arranging a meeting in Canberra, 18 October 2011. The ACS released a Submission for the Australian Cyber Policy White Paper. But in a speech October 2011, the Prime Minister said that she thought the Cyber White Paper should be broadened to a "digital White Paper" ("Closing Remarks to the Digital Economy Forum", Speech, Julia Gillard, Prime Minister of Australia, 5 October 2012). No Cyber White Paper has been released.

The only mention of preparation of a "Digital White Paper" from government I could find was from the Australian Information Commissioner ("Review of freedom of information legislation, Submission to the Hawke Review", December 2012). The Australian Council of Deans of ICT (ACDICT) issued a "Digital White Paper Submission" (Professor  Leon Sterling, President ACDICT, 9 January 2013). This quotes from "Digital White Paper", Key Themes: "The information and communications technology (ICT) skills and training required to sustain the digital economy now and into the future ... The development of collaborative partnerships between governments, industry and community". However, there is no formal reference for the document and I was not able to find the document this quote is taken from.