Citizens blast Dutch e-government progress: The government of the Netherlands has drawn public criticism for its delivery of e-services. The criticism follows a recent global e-government report by consultancy giant Accenture, in which Holland slipped two places in the annual rankings and was described as being more focused on strategy than actual implementation of e-services. A citizen's forum known as burger@overheid, established by the Ministry of the Interior, has criticised the government's unresponsiveness to e-mail and called for it to reply promptly to complaints sent via e-mail. Meanwhile, a second official advisory group called Advies Overheid has accused the Dutch government of not taking the Internet seriously enough. It said that although many government bodies run their own Web sites, many do not even meet the minimum standard required. It also claimed that many departments are slow to change their bureaucratic attitude, which impedes the progress of e-government.
Americans divided on e-government: A new study of attitudes toward e-government in the US shows that citizens are divided on the subject of the submission of personal information to government Web sites. "The New E-Government Equation: Ease, Engagement, Privacy and Protection," released by the Council for Excellence in Government, found that almost 45 percent of Americans surveyed strongly agreed that government services would be improved if they disclosed personal details on government Web sites. However, around the same percentage said they felt they risked the security and privacy of their personal data by doing so. In other findings, around 60 percent of those surveyed said they would be willing to use e-services for everyday transactions with the government, such as renewing drivers' licences or obtaining birth certificates. Still, just 30 percent of respondents supported the idea of on-line voting in elections, with 54 percent strongly opposed to it. Survey respondents cited greater government accountability as the chief benefit of e-government.
Estonia's e-tax system gains ground: Estonia's system of on-line tax filing is gaining in popularity, with nearly 140,000 returns filed on-line this year. The numbers are up from last year's approximately 83,000 returns and are remarkably high for a country with a population of only 1.4 million. The surge in use this year has been partly attributed to improvements in the system -- this year the application remained fully functional while over 14,000 returns were filed on the last day of the tax year, 31 March. The "e-TaxBoard" system, launched in October 2000, allows taxpayers to file, view and edit their income tax returns on-line, as well as to view their VAT returns and submit VAT refund applications. The application is accessible from the Tax Board's Web site and also from Internet kiosks that have been installed in some banks around the country. Since last year, citizens have been able to use their electronic ID cards to log in to the system.
New Zealand launches tax query e-mail service: New Zealand's Inland Revenue department has become the first government agency to implement a secure e-mail service for handling queries from the public. The On-line Correspondence Service is the second initiative in the department's "e-enablement programme" -- a series of 52 e-services planned for implementation by 2007. The department has attracted criticism recently for its inability to handle the volume of calls to its call centres, which last year handled 5.5 million calls. Until now, Inland Revenue has avoided entering into individual correspondence via e-mail, largely due to concerns about privacy. The new secure e-mail service addresses these concerns by issuing users with a log-in ID and password, sent out in the post, enabling taxpayers to electronically ask questions and receive confidential replies from Inland Revenue. In a separate initiative, the department is planning to make individual and business accounts available for viewing on-line by July.
Belgium tests electronic ID cards: Belgium has launched the pilot phase of its electronic identity card system. The EUR10 million pilot scheme will see the citizens of 11 municipalities issued with ID cards, and the scheme, if successful, will be rolled out to the rest of the population over a five-year period, at a total cost of EUR100 million. The ID cards, which will cost residents around EUR10 each, will replace the current paper ID cards that are mandatory for all citizens and residents of Belgium. The cards will contain the same data currently featured on the paper ID cards, along with two electronic signatures -- one to be used for identifying the holder and the other for the signing of electronic documents. If the rollout is a success, Belgium will be the first European state to issue electronic ID cards to its entire population.
Quelle: electricnews
