HL Deb 06 April 1998 vol 588 cc502-4

2.58 p.m.

Lord Randall of St. Budeaux

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What steps they are taking to promote the use of electronic commerce in the United Kingdom in order to improve trade.

Lord Haskel

My Lords, the Government take electronic commerce seriously. That is why through the Programme for Business initiative we are making a significant effort to promote the use of the tools of electronic commerce like e-mail and the Internet to encourage firms to work on line. Another important initiative sponsored by the Department of Trade and Industry is TradeUK, which is perhaps the world's first virtual business park on the World Wide Web. To encourage confidence in the electronic environment, later this month my department is to launch an accredited certification scheme which will establish a code of practice to promote good information security management.

Lord Randall of St. Budeaux

My Lords, I thank my noble friend for his response, but is he aware of the enormous benefits—I underline those words—of electronic mail both to the economy and in overcoming problems such as social exclusion? Is my noble friend also aware that a good deal of informed opinion strongly indicates that the British/European approach to this issue is being seriously left behind by American competition, as with Microsoft, Bill Gates and all that? What will the Government do about all this?

Lord Haskel

My Lords, the Government are aware of the importance of electronic mail, which is why there are the various initiatives that I have mentioned to encourage companies to use it. I am not aware that people consider that we are falling far behind the US. Indeed, my department has done a survey fairly recently—the result will be published next month—which shows that we are catching up with the US on the use of information technology in commerce.

Lord Avebury

My Lords, is the Minister aware that it has been possible to buy books on the World Wide Web from amazon.com at prices 20 to 30 per cent. lower than one pays in the shops? Is it not likely, with the spread of electronic commerce and the use of the web as a marketing tool, that people will pay much lower prices than they have done hitherto and that the consumer will benefit enormously from being able to buy from anywhere in the world and not just from his own country?

Lord Haskel

My Lords, I am aware of amazon..com. I have used it myself on two or three occasions to send gifts of books to people around the world. The Government are encouraging the use of the World Wide Web in commerce for the reasons mentioned by the noble Lord.

Viscount Chelmsford

My Lords, I should like to declare an interest. I am a member of the Simpler Trade Procedures Board which is a government agency. Does the Minister agree that the use of standardised electronic data messages is an important method of simplifying costs and cross-border trade? Does he further agree that that is an important reason for the promotion of electronic commerce and trade facilitation through the WTO?

Lord Haskel

My Lords, I can confirm that the Government agree with the view expressed by the noble Viscount. The Government are committed to working, through their membership of the European Community, towards achieving global and binding WTO rules on trade facilitation. I agree that that work should take full account of the developments in the field of electronic commerce.

Lord Grenfell

My Lords, does my noble friend agree that there is a certain dichotomy in the fact that those who would benefit most from the lower prices which have been referred to by the noble Lord, Lord Avebury, will be those who are least likely to be able to afford the hardware necessary to be able to get into the web site? Would he not be alarmed were some kind of shadowy economy to emerge which would discriminate against the poor?

Lord Haskel

My Lords, I take my noble friend's concerns about discriminating against the poor. However, I do not agree that people who do not have computers will not benefit from electronic commerce. After all, many companies are encouraging the move towards on-line ordering because that cuts costs by enabling them to follow products until they are ordered, which avoids the need for warehousing. With such a use of electronic commerce all of us will benefit from lower prices.

Lord Lucas

My Lords, if the Government are so all-singing and all-dancing when it comes to the World Wide Web, why, a year after I asked, are they still unable to answer my Written Questions by e-mail?

Lord Haskel

My Lords, I am not aware of the answer to that question, because e-mail is certainly in use in the Department of Trade and Industry. I am sure that the noble Lord can communicate with that department by e-mail. Perhaps he should try to put down his Written Questions in the form of e-mail rather than in Hansard.

Baroness O'Cathain

My Lords, with the accredited certification scheme that the Minister mentioned, will he see that every effort is made to ensure that the people who are participating in it are aware of the millennium bug problem? We are told that many of the smaller companies which have been involved in it are likely to come unstuck in 2000.

Lord Haskel

My Lords, I take the point made by the noble Baroness. As she will be aware, the Action 2000 scheme is designed to avoid the problems of the millennium bug. We will tackle the problem in a proper and businesslike way and show that it can be fixed. Action 2000 will raise understanding of the implications of the problems, will point out to people the risk of not doing anything and will motivate them to take action.

Baroness O'Cathain

My Lords, I am sorry, but perhaps I might return to this point. Will part of this accredited—I took the words down—certification scheme for electronic trading be designed to ensure that there is no problem with the millennium hug for those companies?

Lord Haskel

My Lords, I am not sure that the two are connected, but I shall write to the noble Baroness about that.