Digital government for all

The public has been asked for its views on an ambitious strategy aiming to make Ireland a leading provider of digital public services across Europe.

The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform published Connecting Government 2030: A Digital and ICT Strategy for Ireland’s Public Service in June 2022 and a public consultation on the strategy closed in November 2022.

Connecting Government 2030 replaces the previous Public Service ICT strategy and eGovernment 2017 – 2020 strategy and will act as an umbrella strategy for actions across a number of other related government policies and strategies.

The consultation seeks to identify which government services the public would like to prioritise for putting online and identify the features, supports, and assistance could be used to make digital public services easier and more efficient to use. In pursuing the consultation, Minister of State Ossian Smyth TD told eolas that the Department “did not just advertise for people to come to us, we went to them to ensure that we would not be limited in our sample”.

Connecting Government 2030 addresses the digitalisation of public services dimension of the national digital strategy, Harnessing Digital – The Digital Ireland Framework. It also aligns with the targets set out in Civil Service Renewal 2030.

The Department says the strategy will carry forward the GovTech 2019 Priority Action Plan and incorporates specific actions from the Programme for Government, as well as addressing digital targets set by the EU.

Public services range from applying for a driving licence or paying taxes through to accessing local libraries and setting up a business. The Department stresses that the improvement of digital services will also improve the offline experience for those unable to access services digitally.

The core design principles include:

• digital by default and cloud-first: Building towards the targets for 2030 that 90 per cent of applicable services are consumed online and being more proactive and progressive in embracing cloud;

• all-of-government approach: Ensuring an integrated and richer experience for individuals and businesses and that digital considerations are embedded in policy processes;

• new ways of working: Enabling working environments that empower our people to give their best, promoting the sharing of ideas, designs and innovations; and

• privacy-driven and secure by design: Design and build systems that are aligned with best practice in security and cyber defence.

The Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Michael McGrath TD, and the Minister of State for eGovernment, Ossian Smyth TD launched the public consultation, with Smyth stating: “This is a great opportunity for anyone to inform and set the Government’s digital priorities over the next seven years.”­