Deirdre Clune (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)

I am glad to have the opportunity to speak on this very important motion. As Deputy Coveney said, this is the second time in the past few months that we have debated this issue. Previously we dealt with telecommunications and the lack of progress in that arena.

This motion focuses on e-Government and refers in particular to the Comptroller and Auditor General's recent report. It also outlines ways in which we can and should improve e-Government. Published in February of this year, the UN e-Government survey for 2008, entitled From e-Government to Connected Governance, argues that citizens, communities and the private sector are clients of Government and they "demand top performance, efficiency, proper accountability and public trust, and a renewed focus on delivering better service and results".

It further adds:

E-government can contribute significantly to the process of transformation of the government towards a leaner, more cost-effective government. It can facilitate communication and improve the coordination of authorities at different tiers of government, within organizations and even at the departmental level. Further, e-government can enhance the speed and efficiency of operations by streamlining processes, lowering costs, improving research capabilities and improving documentation and record-keeping.

We all agree with those sentiments and instinctively know that the above are the potential benefits of a fully-implemented e-Government strategy. The same report ranked Ireland 19th overall, behind countries such as Sweden, Denmark, Norway, the United States, France and the United Kingdom. That is not where we want to be and it is not a place for a country which is pitching itself as a knowledge-based economy that aims to compete on a global stage.

The report on e-Government from the Comptroller and Auditor General focused on the Government's ambitions to develop an information society, as initially announced in January 1999. At that time, the Government set out its plan to develop an information society. It set out a series of actions and initiatives to be undertaken over a three year period, up to 2001. The Government followed from that with the publication of New Connections, a plan spanning 2002 to 2005. It was ambitious in its target that all on-line services capable of delivery would be available by 2005. When the report was produced in 2002 nobody believed that this could be achieved.

The Comptroller and Auditor General's report shines a glaring spotlight on the shortfalls of the strategy, which have been mentioned by previous speakers. Of the projects that were approved, just less than half were delivered. Only 44% of projects were partially delivered, while others were totally abandoned. Deputies referred to the cost overruns of approximately 20% and the time overruns of approximately 25%.

Mention has been made of some of the positives in the e-Government project and I certainly acknowledge the success of the Revenue on-line service. The motor tax project is also a success, as are some of the projects undertaken by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. However, we also have the stories of PPARS, electronic voting and the national health portal which was abandoned. One cannot apply for a driving licence or a passport on-line. The public service broker, to which the Comptroller and Auditor General devoted much attention, was supposed to be one single access point for all Government services. It was to be a one-stop shop for Government, local authority and health services. However, the project's infeasibility should have been realised from an early stage. The planning was weak and the implementation was slow and costly. The Comptroller and Auditor General reported that the broker is now up and running but is very disappointing because the services it can deliver are limited.

The report of the Comptroller and Auditor General provides more evidence of how Government projects have led to waste and overspending with little or no improvement in services to the public. What is worrying is the criticism by the Comptroller and Auditor General of the administration of e-Government projects. He called for improved management processes and argued:

All projects should have clear, measurable business objectives, and time and cost targets. A much stronger project cost and performance measurement and reporting system is required, integrated with departmental and agency reporting systems.

The report highlights inadequacies and inefficiencies in the Government's implementation of its e-Government strategy. I urge the Government to continue with its e-Government strategy. I hope it has not shied away from its implementation. We have heard nothing since 2006 about e-Government targets or the Government's proposals to implement the strategy. It is very important for a country that wants to move forward, to encourage its citizens to avail of broadband services, to become e-efficient and to connect through information technology to have a strong and effective e-Government strategy. Without such a strategy and a determination to implement it, we will not move forward and realise our ambitions. I urge the Government to continue to set targets and to achieve those targets. It is essential for a small island nation on the periphery of Europe to have a strong strategy and definite implementation targets.

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