Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate there is suspicion to the point of paranoia around this but I assure the Deputy not only will the gardaí still be the gardaí, the Navy will still be the Navy and Intreo will still be Intreo. It means Departments will adopt a common and unified brand. It is a harp. It makes sense that Departments, which are essentially just branches of Government, should all have the same logo. If one went to a major enterprise or company, every department or division of that company or service would not have its own website or logo. It is one Government. We want to have joined-up government in terms of policy, delivery and communications. Over time, it stands to reason that doing that will save money. We want to give people clarity around communications so they know what is coming from Government and what is not. There is much debate in the House about online advertising and information campaigns and how often the source of that information or the people behind such campaigns is covert. This is the opposite of that. It makes sure people know if there is information being put out or if there is a communications campaign that it comes from the Government of Ireland so it will not be obscured by an entity they have not heard of if they are not sure the entity is a Government body, a private enterprise or an NGO, for example.

The cost incurred so far for the unified Government identity is €47,000, excluding VAT. That covers design work and the roll-out of services as well as the production of comprehensive guidelines for the use of all Departments.

A unified identity for Government replaces a fragmented system that saw Departments and agencies use and communicate through a multiplicity of identities, logos and brands resulting in confusion and a lack of clarity for citizens, as the number of Government bodies has proliferated over past decades.

The experience of Governments internationally and the research done in other jurisdictions, notably in the Netherlands, confirms the confusion and lack of clarity resulting from a fragmented approach. The Dutch experience, and that of the United Kingdom, is that a unified, consistent identity ensures greater clarity around the role and place of Government in society for citizens and in Government communications. The unified identity makes it clearer for citizens to understand and recognise when Government is communicating with them and when projects and initiatives are funded by Government. Departments are represented online by multiple distinct websites and platforms, each providing different visual styles and user experience. The vision for gov.ieis it will provide one portal for citizens to access Government services. The site is being developed with the citizen at its centre and will provide coherent digital experiences for citizens in communicating with Departments. The design prioritises ease of access to services provided by Government and represents a move away from today's situation where website designs are aligned to how Governments are organised internally. These changes are being driven by the eGovernment strategy and Our Public Service 2020. Significant advancements have been made on gov.iesince its launch in November 2017 both on structure and the interface of the website and on the use of the site more generally. It is being used to host many cross-government communications campaigns, including Healthy Ireland, Be Safe Online, Sláintecare, Project Ireland 2040 and budget 2019. The current phase of the project entails the migration of departmental websites to gov.ie. A set of guidelines has been developed, which all Departments will adhere to, in the migration to the website, leading to a uniform and intuitive experience for the citizen and its interaction across Departments. The Department of the Taoiseach has been the first Department to migrate and this migration is due to be completed by the end of this year with other Department websites moving across throughout 2019.

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