Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)

I am very aware of the talents of the Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach, Deputy Kitt, who is my constituency colleague. I am aware the former Minister of State in that position, Deputy Hanafin, would not be one of the slower members of the Taoiseach's Cabinet; that prize lies elsewhere. It is clear to me as a member of the Joint Committee on Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, which is reviewing the area of the development of electronic services and e-use in the wider Government circles, that it has failed. The experiment of having a Minister of State in charge of e-Government, a Minister responsible for developing the infrastructure and other Ministers looking at the development of uses, has not worked. It is clear from the work of the committee that we have failed to roll out the use of telecommunications in Government generally, particularly broadband and e-business, so as to encourage and stimulate the use of the infrastructure on which a significant amount of money is being expended.

Does the Taoiseach agree that if two of his brightest and best have not succeeded in developing this e-Ministry, perhaps because they are too busy with their other duties, and even if they succeeded with the e-Cabinet project, it is an indication that the general policy on the development of e-Government needs to be changed and this requires one Cabinet Minister to be given responsibility for the infrastructure and development of e-services across all Departments, particularly in the Departments of Education and Science and Health and Children and the Revenue Commissioners, which all communicate directly with the public? I have broadened out my question but I think it is valid in terms of the development of e-Government services. I contend the current way of doing business does not seem to be working.

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