Playing the part of bridesmaid to the new procedures, the minster launched the service with aplomb during a colourful 'wedding' ceremony involving two of her own staff members held outside the department's offices in Dublin. Cheered on by the rest of her staff, Ms Coughlan caught the wedding bouquet while declaring the new system of civil registrations would be friendly and faithful to customers' needs.
Faster production of birth, death and marriage certificates, new registers of divorce and nullity of marriage, and streamlining registration of adoptions are among a range of services that will shortly come online.
The modernisation of the Civil Registration Service will also lead to an electronic research facility for genealogists and family researchers and the development of internet services in line with Government services.
"The new services will be more customer friendly and will reduce red tape," said Ms Coughlan as the Civil Registration Bill 2003 was published.
"They will be more customer oriented and will, for example, lead to the end of lengthy queues for birth and marriage certificates. The introduction of new technology will transform services.
"In future all life events such as birth, deaths, adoptions, will be available on a national life event database and will be available at any registrar's office. The new service will also include the automatic allocation of a Personal Public Services Number (PPS number), which I launched earlier this year, which will provide for better public services delivery to every citizen," she said.
Implementation of the new system will be carried out on a phased basis. The first phase caters for the electronic production of birth, death and marriage certificates and the electronic registration of births and deaths.
"The computerisation of life event data together with the new processes and procedures will introduce nationwide standards for registering life events, underpin the integration of public services and thus enable the delivery of quality services to our citizens."
Further phases will include the introduction of new procedures governing the registration of marriages and development of e-Government internet services.
Quelle: Irish Examiner
