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E-Government
20. Mr. Andrew Robathan (Blaby): If he will make a statement on progress towards introducing e-government. [119453]
23. Paul Flynn (Newport, West): What new proposals he has to extend e-government services. [119457]
The Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Mr. Douglas Alexander): The latest electronic service delivery survey shows that 63 per cent. of services were e-enabled at the end of 2002, and Departments have forecast that they are on track for the 2005 target. We recently enhanced that target to ensure that certain key services achieve high levels of use.
Mr. Robathan : That is encouraging in so far as it goes, but has the Minister read the Accenture report on e-government, which states that, although the United Kingdom
- "has been a strong e-Government performer",
- "looks to have stalled somewhat of late"?
- "the biggest concern for the government is the low number of citizens using online government services."
Mr. Alexander: The hon. Gentleman makes a number of important points. Initially, we were driving forward our commitment to ensure that all Government services are e-enabled. That continues to be the agenda that we advance towards 2005. However, for exactly the reasons that he raised, we have also committed ourselves to enhance that target and ensure that we drive up usage levels. We are specifically considering the Canadian example. Canada has a single citizen portal, which is one of the key reasons why its level of usage is significantly higher than in many other countries. In that regard, I hope that we can make proposals in due course that allow us to harness best practice from abroad as we enhance our agenda for e-government.
Paul Flynn: Although we have not reached the level of the world leader, Canada, the growth in e-government has been commendable in terms of the increase in usage and the innovation that has taken place. However, is it not disappointing that the two groups who could probably gain the most from using e-government are not using it? Only one in 10 of the elderly and one in six of the poorest families have access to the internet. What plans does the Minister have to ensure that that increases?
Mr. Alexander: My hon. Friend raises an extremely important point. We have established 6,000 UK Online centres across the country, particularly serving low-income and deprived communities where access to the internet might otherwise not be available. In recent weeks, the e-envoy's office has been taking forward a nationwide campaign that is specifically targeted at the kind of groups that my hon. Friend identifies. I am glad to say that in my constituency of Paisley, South, a burgeoning number of silver surfers are taking advantage of public access to the internet, which previously would not have been available.
Finally, to give a sense of scale, over the coming year the Government are investing about £6 billion in information and communications technology. We are determined to ensure that that investment serves not just one section of the community, but precisely those sections that my hon. Friend mentioned.
Mr. Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam): The Minister referred to the Government's target of putting all services online by 2005. Can he confirm whether he expects to be judged on that target at the beginning or
the end of 2005? Will he ensure that any reports that are produced as part of that process give full information on any problems or failures in meeting the target, as those are likely to be important in learning for future development?
Mr. Alexander: As the hon. Gentleman is aware, e-government, not least because of the scale of public investment involved, is not only reported on by the Government through the work of the e-envoy, but has, appropriately, been the subject of a number of reports of this House. There is little to fear in terms of the transparency of the work that we will undertake in relation to the 2005 targets.
To update the House, in 2002–03, 64,000 people applied for a passport online and 160,000 people applied to university online. I am therefore confident that we continue to make progress. The 2005 target has been vital in persuading Departments that we are serious about getting every single service online that we can. However, I am not complacent, and the work in government continues.
Mr. Andrew Miller (Ellesmere Port and Neston): Does my hon. Friend agree that the issue is no longer technology, but the political will to join up Departments to make things work? It is still the case, for example, that a constituent dealing with a death will have to deal with up to a dozen or more Departments. When are the Government going to ensure that there is a genuine one-stop shop to deal with key life events?
Mr. Alexander: My hon. Friend raises an important point. Indeed, I am corresponding on the subject with my hon. Friend the Member for Stalybridge and Hyde (James Purnell). It reflects the fact that this technology should not be seen solely as a technological fix for some of the challenges that we encounter, but rather as a platform on which we can develop genuinely citizen-centred services. The speech that the Prime Minister is making today at the Fabian Society reflects the far broader agenda, of which ICT is only one part, of modernising the public services that were so ravaged by a lack of investment by the Conservative party.
Mr. Philip Hammond (Runnymede and Weybridge): Referring again to the Minister's target of 2005 for making all public services, including local government services, accessible online, will he acknowledge that there is a problem of definition, and that it is not sufficient for services merely to be nominally available online? Can he confirm that the criterion that he will use for measuring success in achieving the 2005 target is a significant degree of interactivity on departmental and local authority websites?
Mr. Alexander: To use the technological jargon, we are moving towards a multi-channel future. I am pleased to say that in meeting the 2005 target, the use of contact centres plays an important role in the interactivity that the hon. Gentleman identifies. In my constituency, and in constituencies across the country, people are already interacting with local government, not only through e-mail, but by using contact centres. Interactivity is vital: that is why we have specifically targeted key services to drive up usage.
Public Appointments
21. Dr. Ian Gibson (Norwich, North): What steps are being taken to encourage members of the public to take up public appointments. [119454]
The Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Mr. Douglas Alexander): The Government are committed to ensuring greater access to public appointments. My Department launched a new public appointments vacancy website on 27 March. It provides vacancy details—there are currently more than 100—and information on how to apply.
Dr. Gibson : I congratulate my hon. Friend on making a unique journey from Paisley to the Duchy of Lancaster. I hope that he has found where it is. Not everybody has access to the internet, and that creates a problem. Does my hon. Friend agree that many groups in our society—for example, young people and the disabled—do not take up public appointments? Does he further agree that a reason for that is that the old lags on committees often patronise the new people and tell them, "That was very interesting. Now sit back and have another cup of tea and a rich tea biscuit"?
Mr. Alexander: I thank my hon. Friend for his warm words of congratulation on my promotion. Let me return the favour and say that he is unique in the House in having made the journey from playing for Paisley's distinguished football team, St. Mirren, to being a Norwich Member of Parliament.
My hon. Friend made an important point about lack of access to the internet. It is precisely the reason why the Cabinet Office produced a newsletter for groups who do not have access. However, his broader point is also important. We are determined that we should have public appointments that genuinely reflect modern Britain rather than an outdated notion of the great and the good. We need to move that agenda forward expeditiously.
Mr. Graham Brady (Altrincham and Sale, West): We want to encourage appointments as magistrates, among other public appointments, especially in the Duchy of Lancaster. Will the Minister confirm that in January, the Department vetoed the appointment of 10 magistrates to the Trafford bench on the ground of their political beliefs or views? Does he agree that giving the impression that people will be judged on their views rather than their merit and ability is no way to encourage them to apply for public appointments?
Mr. Alexander: The hon. Gentleman raises an important point. A candidate's political views neither qualify nor disqualify them for appointment. In the interests of balance, it is a requirement that the composition of the bench should broadly reflect the voting pattern for the area, as evidenced by the last two general elections. However, the priority must be to ensure the effective working of the judicial system. That is our goal.
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