There is cautious optimism that councils will meet the 2005
deadline.
Despite reports that councils are struggling to meet the 2005
deadline for getting services online, recent research offers
cautious grounds for optimism.
Labour's e-government agenda suffered a setback last year when a
survey by the Society of IT Management revealed that more than half
of local authorities were not expecting to meet the 2005 target for
putting services online. This came just two and half years after
Tony Blair had taken the bold move of bringing the e-government
deadline forward from 2008 to 2005.
Socitm's IT Trends in Local Government 2002/3 report, published
last December, painted a less than rosy picture, with 15% of
councils not even trying to meet the 2005 deadline at all.
Whitehall says councils' most recent Implementing Electronic
Government statements, which enable them to receive a share of
e-government funding, suggest that the vast majority are on target
for 2005. There has, however, been speculation that the statements
are "aspirational".
But early findings of research by Socitm and the Chartered
Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy show real progress is
being made in a number of areas of e-government, such as council
tax transactions and call centres.
Socitm official John Serle said, "The Socitm/CIPFA research has
made me conclude that it is possible for councils to meet the 2005
target. My view is that, even with the time that is left, local
authorities - if they resource it and manage it properly - could
deliver what the government wants."
The variety of e-government products now offered by the IT industry
is one of Serle's main causes for optimism. He said, "There are IT
solutions emerging from both major and smaller suppliers offering a
whole range of approaches and cost levels to local
government."
Someone else who believes that councils are moving in the right
direction is Martin Ferguson, assistant director of e-government at
the Improvement and Development Agency. The Local E-Government Now
2003 report, produced by the agency and Socitm, praised
e-government services in transport, community regeneration and
raising educational standards.
Cumbria County Council, for example, won praise for its use of
computers and interactive whiteboards in schools and Liverpool City
Council's deployment of sensing technologies in the homes of
vulnerable people was also cited as a trailblazing project.
One local government IT manager, who asked not to be named, said,
"The targets are there and they are there to be reached. There is
still time to do it. From what I can see, most councils are getting
up there."
But other experts are more sceptical. Ian Kearns, associate
director of the Institute for Public Policy Research, predicted
that more than half of councils would miss the 2005 target. He said
the reasons for this range from lack of money to cultural barriers
and scepticism about the value of the e-government process.
Councils make e-government work
Creating safer communities
Argyll and Bute Council: The Three Islands
Partnership uses IT and videoconferencing facilities to bring all
public services together through a service point on each
island
Transforming the local environment
Chesterfield Borough Council: All requests from
the community regarding waste and waste management are dealt with
through a new call centre and automatic connections to the relevant
contractors
Meeting local transport needs more
effectively
Brighton & Hove City Council: Global
positioning technology is being used to ensure that Brighton &
Hove's buses run on time and that travellers receive up-to-the
minute information
Promoting the economic vitality of
localities
Sunderland City Council: Electronic village
halls across the city are the focus for learning and training
schemes.