The survey said the UK was one of four countries, alongside Austria, Malta and Portugal, to have full online availability. The survey found it had progressed 10 points since 2007. The UK also ranked 7th for sophistication of services.

Capgemini, alongside Rand Europe, IDC and the Danish Technological Institute have released the 8th Benchmark Measurement of European E-Government Services. Since the last survey, released in 2007, 71 per cent of the 27 EU member states are providing transactional services. The survey said this was an improvement on 2007, when only 59 per cent were providing transactional services.

The UK's performance in particular was rated highly by the survey, as it appeared regularly among the top countries in terms of user experience.

In a summary of the UK's performance, the survey said: "The UK performance based on information society and e-government indicators is high on average, especially in online availability of services. Scores are relatively weaker on the use of e-government, especially by business. The UK e-government strategy is focused on transforming government; by increasing professionalism, sharing services and integrating back offices and improving public service delivery."

The survey praised the government's separation between the roles of chief information officer and chief technology officer. It said this emphasised the importance of e-government for transformation as distinct from pure ICT implementation in government.

Capgemini's Graham Colclough said: "EU countries are at risk of not hitting important targets, like the Manchester E-Procurement Declaration and EU Services Directive, and should not risk falling behind some of the leading nations around the world in terms of how they interact with their citizens. Financial constraints need not restrict the delivery of e-government. These technologies are more important than ever for delivering efficient public services across Europe."

The UK was rated third for e-government in Europe in a survey by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development in October.

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Quelle/Source: Public Service, 20.11.2009

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