Dr Reinecke said that he had met with one of the Finance Department Secretaries recently and that 'My understanding is that it will be released in about a month.'  Dr Reinecke's report was handed to the Department of Finance in July.

He said that the delay in announcing both the findings of the report, and the Government's response was only due to the election, and the subsequent appointment of a new minister to the portfolio, Penny Wong.

Dr Reinecke was given two months to lead an independent review of the effectiveness of the implementation of the Gershon report's recommended reforms. His remit also included considering the future role of AGIMO as a result of reforms.

The review concentrated on seven key areas of reform; pan-government governance, organisational capability, management of ICT expenditure, ICT skills, data centres, ICT marketplace issues, and sustainable ICT.

Peter Carr, the managing director of analyst Longhaus, who was commissioned by the IT Contract and Recruitment Association (ITCRA) to examine the impact of Gershon, particularly on employment trends, last week accused Canberra of having been focussed on cutting ICT budgets and contractor salaries instead of the systemic reform in ICT governance that had been intended by Sir Peter Gershon. Instead 'razor gangs' had saved $22 million on contractor salaries in the first year of implementation, he said.

Mr Carr predicted that Dr Reinecke's report would 'probably die a quiet death.'  Not so according to Dr Reinecke.