Reding welcomes e-government successes, but calls for more work
European Information Society and Media Commissioner Viviane Reding hailed the success of recent initiatives in the field of e-government at a ministerial conference in Manchester, UK, on 25 November, but said that more work would be needed to fully realise the potential of innovative public services. Following a meeting of European e-government ministers at the conference, the UK Presidency issued a ministerial declaration which highlighted electronic public procurement, inclusive e-government, efficiency and effectiveness, and key enablers such as electronic identification as priority areas for action. 'Best of e-government' awards were also presented for the most successful recent initiatives in Europe, with the winners coming from Ireland, Poland, the Netherlands and Denmark. 'These winners demonstrate how governments across Europe are using e-government to deliver real benefits to citizens and business,' said Commissioner Reding. 'For example, electronic invoicing in Denmark, one of this year's award winners, saves businesses 50 million euro per year, and administrations - hence taxpayers - 120 to 150 million euro. If we could get this working all over Europe we would save 15 billion euro per year.' Other awards went to KSI ZUS in Poland for its secure infrastructure for implementing pension reform, the Kadaster-on-line system in the Netherlands, which provides businesses with direct access to updated land registry information, and Ireland's Revenue-on-line system, which provides businesses and citizens with an easy-to-use system for paying taxes. In her speech to the conference, Ms Reding made the case for a focus on e-government services in Europe. 'Used wisely, it can help sustain our social model by making government more efficient. It can help promote growth by cutting red-tape. It can help meet security threats and emerging global threats by making administrative coordination more effective. [...] It can also help to reconnect people to politics and policy.' The Commissioner also highlighted the link between competitiveness and the quality of public administrations, with countries scoring high for the openness and efficiency of their public administrations also topping competitiveness scoreboards. 'We have made significant progress in recent years, but we cannot afford to be complacent,' the Commissioner continued. Online availability of the 20 basic public services benchmarked by the Commission is already above 90 per cent in Europe, she said. 'But these are the quick wins, the low hanging fruit. So we have to work further. E-government will only come to full fruition through major organisational change in administrations and by equipping civil servants with the right skills This is a long road, and will take time and persistence.' Ms Reding announced to the conference that the ministerial declaration and best of e-government awards would inspire the Commission's new action plan on e-government, which the Commissioner will unveil next year as part of the i2010 initiative. 'We have already held consultations with many stakeholders and our online consultation is still open. If you haven't done so already, I urge you to contribute,' she told delegates. 'I will announce the details [...] next year. But my overall aim is clear - e-government that delivers tangible benefits for citizens and businesses, everywhere in the EU, leaving no one behind.' A Commission statement elaborated further on the proposed content of the action plan, saying that while the ministerial declaration would be taken into account, there are some additional points such as local and regional involvement and pan-European services that would also be taken into account. The action plan will also encourage and support the cooperation of European stakeholders, and take a practical and delivery-oriented approach, it added. Finally, as a sign of its ongoing commitment to the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) in order to improve its performance and transparency, the Commission adopted a strategic framework entitled 'e-Commission 2006-2010' on 25 November, applying European e-government policy to its own administration.