HL Deb 01 May 2001 vol 625 c88WA
The Earl of Northesk

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How they respond to the demotion of the United Kingdom from sixth to eighth in Accenture's global e-government rankings. [HL1657]

Lord Falconer of Thoroton

The UK is widely recognised as one of the world's leading countries in the development of e-government. The Accenture report itself recognises that the UK is investing for the future and says that "this research confirms that the UK is laying a sound foundation for online service delivery".

Direct snapshot comparisons between countries can be misleading as they do not reflect the strength of the underlying infrastructure or planning. We are well on track to deliver our commitment to make all government services available online by 2005. The ukonline.gov.uk portal and Government Gateway provide us with world-class foundations for doing that.