IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

The Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, has launched a comprehensive overview of his policies on Information and Communication Technology. A key theme of his plan is widening take up of ICTs, both as a means of ensuring that technology plays its part in combating social exclusion, and so that London’s business community remains ahead of the game in terms of telecommunications provision. This is a must-read document for anyone involved in eGovernment, whether in central or local government, as many of the action points defined in the report are of far-reaching impact both within London, but also in the light they throw on IEG3 statements and both strategies and tactics in other major cities and towns across the UK.

The five main areas covered by the report are:

• ICT and business: enhancing London’s competitiveness
• Social exclusion, equality and ICT for London’s communities
• Technology and the public sector: improving the quality of London’s public services
• LondonConnects: London’s e-government agency
• World class infrastructure for a world class city

The policy statement reviews measures already taken by the Mayor, the LDA and LondonConnects and describes the key priorities for continued joint working across the capital, including the need for advances in the public sector’s use of new technology.

The Mayor’s vision is, he says, to develop London as an exemplary sustainable world city based on strong and diverse economic growth. This embraces a socially inclusive approach enabling all Londoners to share London’s success, and a fundamental improvement in the way we manage our environment and make use of natural resources.

The Mayor sees his interest in information and communications technology in two key areas:

• to see where and how new ICTs may represent opportunities or threats to the delivery of the Mayor’s vision for London, and
• to identify what the Mayor and his agencies can do about any of these issues.

Launching the report, Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone said:

"London has a great record when it comes to embracing technology. All London schools and colleges are connected to the Internet, with over eighty percent on broadband, while fifty percent of Londoners are logging on at home. Detailed figures show lower income households are often choosing not to get on-line. London’s business community leads the UK in adopting new technology, but some sectors are slower to take advantage. It is essential that London remains a world leading centre of ICT development and adoption, especially in the way that we champion equal opportunity of access for all.”

The Mayor’s E – Envoy, Val Shawcross AM, added:

“The impact of new technology on London’s citizens, businesses and visitors is one of the key challenges facing London at the beginning of the 21st century. Technology impacts on every aspect of every day life and we are committed to ensuring no-one is left behind. One of the key areas projects we want to develop, through LondonConnects, and in partnership with the London boroughs and other key partners, is a city-wide public services portal. This will bring integrated web access to all public sector services in London from a single starting point and help London government at all levels provide a better service to our citizens.”

Ken Livingstone’s says in his report:

"The continued success of London as a world city depends on many things – not least the continued, and fast, development of our use of, and infrastructure for, information and communications technologies.

I am pleased, therefore, to publish this short statement which sets out a series of policies and actions needed to make sure that London maintains its position as one of the worlds leading centres of technology adoption and innovation.

As information and communications technologies (ICTs) have become ever more ubiquitous there is a need to set out clear priorities for action for London. ICTs are important for London’s continuing business success and global competitiveness. But this economic imperative is balanced by the need to ensure our most excluded or deprived communities receive support and assistance so that the adoption of new technologies does not further worsen social divisions in our city.

This statement sets out some key areas for action by the Greater London Authority and its group of functional bodies. It emphasises the importance of collaborative working to improve our public services and the important role to be played by LondonConnects, our regional e-government partnership.

Technology now offers the chance to join-up the work of key agencies, for instance so that information about children at risk is available to the right professionals at the right time, whether they work for the NHS, a London borough or a voluntary agency; so that Londoners can do all their business with Government at one visit rather than being sent from office to office; so that we can all move through the city with ease and efficiency.

I look forward to continuing to work with all key partners, in industry, in the public sector, and in London’s voluntary and community sector to achieve a London where all sectors can reap the benefits that technology has to offer."

The policy statement is available at the GLA website at this link

Quelle: PublicTechnology, 30.01.2004