Tom Kitt (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)

I move amendment No. 1:

To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following:

acknowledges that technology is a potent tool to be used in almost any field of activity, providing opportunities for innovation and performance improvement;

accepts that because technology is changing rapidly, increased functionality will continue to create possibilities for innovation, many of which can be ground-breaking and even revolutionary;

recognises that performance improvement is the key driver for the use of technology in service delivery, internal administration and otherwise in the creation of mutually beneficial social, cultural, commercial, or other networks;

accepts that, where performance improvement in the context of modernisation is the desired goal, organisations have to manage the other significant contextual change requirements for the people, processes and the cultures of organisations;

welcomes the significant successes in the development of on-line public services with annual savings of over €86 million for just 21 of the e-Government projects and notes that this will rise as more services are developed;

welcomes the increased availability of public service information through services like citizens information on-line and the Basis website;

welcomes the streamlining of compliance procedures and the reduction of administrative burdens for organisations and individuals using technology, with facilities such as Revenue on-line and motor tax on-line;

welcomes the administrative process improvements and efficiencies gained in projects like the e-Cabinet system;

welcomes the benefits gained from programmes like the civil registration modernisation programme, which has yielded benefits in other areas like the processing of child benefits;

welcomes the increased capacity in organisations resulting from the use of technology with, for example, the Revenue Commissioners doubling the number of taxpayers they handle with no additional staff and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food freeing up clerical staff for redeployment on the Garda PULSE system;

notes that the OECD report published on 28 April 2008 acknowledges that e-Government should support modernisation and that there should be a greater emphasis on performance as a driver;

notes that REACH has been taken over by the Department of Finance, arising from the recent review of its activities;

notes that some public service organisations have yet to fully exploit the potential of technology and that the new arrangements in place within the Department of Finance will address this;

notes that a peer review process has been initiated by the Department of Finance to ensure that major projects are being planned and managed to a high standard and in keeping with recognised good practice;

accepts that, in relation to electronic identity processing, the priority must be the protection of identity and other personal information and that any system introduced must meet this requirement, and notes that as recommended by the review of Reach, the Department of Finance is researching the provision of central identity systems with a view to the provision of a robust authentication system to Departments and agencies that provide services on-line;

welcomes the recommendations of the Comptroller and Auditor General, the OECD and the Reach review for a different approach to the exploitation of technology in Government;

looks forward to the implementation of those recommendations by the relevant Departments, having regard to the need to deploy and use technology as a response to a need for improved performance; and

looks forward to the publication in July of a new action plan that will build on the successes to date and will take account of the recommendations of the OECD and Comptroller and Auditor General reports, accepting that prudent use of technology also involves considerable changes for the people, processes and the cultures of public service organisations.

I wish to share time with the Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Deputy Mary Wallace, and Deputy Thomas Byrne.

I strongly welcome the motion tabled by Deputy Coveney and his Fine Gael colleagues. I also accept Deputy Coveney's stated position that he is not interested in trading insults in the context of this Private Member's debate. I have witnessed many Private Member's debates in this Chamber and they can become rather heated. That is parliamentary democracy at work and it may happen yet in the course of this debate tonight or tomorrow. If it happens, so be it, but this situation is very different because there are many good ideas in this motion.

I do not mind informing the House that I discussed the content of Deputy Coveney's motion with him today with a view to determining whether we could reach common ground. We have not done so, but I wish to put down that marker. If we find common ground, that will be great and we will work hard again tomorrow in an effort to do so. That is my approach.

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