Premier launches e-Government Strategy for Public Sector

11/8/04 Premier Geoff Gallop today launched the e-Government Strategy for the Western Australian Public Sector in a drive to deliver better services to the people of WA and increase opportunities for community participation in Government.

11/8/04
Premier Geoff Gallop today launched the e-Government Strategy for the Western Australian Public Sector in a drive to deliver better services to the people of WA and increase opportunities for community participation in Government.
The experiences of governments around the world has shown that Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) can be a vital tool in redesigning the way in which agencies work together and deliver better services to the public.
The e-Government Strategy for the WA Public Sector sets the framework to help agencies examine their core business and move closer to the delivery of seamless, efficient and citizen-focused services.
Dr Gallop addressed more than 100 representatives from the WA State Government and the information and communications technology industry at the launch of the strategy this morning.
"Since coming to office, this Government has demonstrated its commitment to an integrated approach to governance within WA," he said.
"The Machinery of Government Taskforce has made a series of recommendations to change public sector organisation and to achieve much more with the resources that we have.
"Western Australians have a growing expectation that Government will deliver quality services tailored to their needs. e-Government offers exciting potential for Government agencies to better communicate with citizens and put them at the centre of service delivery.
"Employing the principles of e-Government is about changing the way Government agencies approach their core business. It is about a shift in thinking in the public sector from a 'silo' or single-agency mentality towards an integrated and innovative understanding of the business of government."
The Office of e-Government within the Department of Premier and Cabinet is charged with providing strategic advice for current initiatives such as the Shared Corporate Services Project and Procurement Reform Project to ensure their compatibility with e-Government aims.
Under the e-Government Strategy, the office will initiate whole-of-government projects, policies and guidelines and provide support to agencies in their development of potential e-Government initiatives.
The Premier highlighted a number of e-Government initiatives that were already well established in the WA public sector:

  • EAS2 (Electronic Advice of Sale) - a partnership between the WA Department of Land Information, the Office of State Revenue and the Water Corporation. EAS2 enabled conveyancers around the State to conduct advice of sale inquiries, lodge inquiries and receive rate and tax information online. This enhanced the accuracy of information, minimised manual tasks, reduced turnaround time for inquiries and improved efficiencies through the electronic transmission of data.
  • e-Briefs was a joint WA Police Service and Department of Justice initiative that enabled the secure electronic exchange of police complaints to the courts and the transmission of court results to the police. e-Briefs now facilitated the processing of up to 90 per cent of prosecutions.
  • Tourism e-Marketplace was a one-stop shop for consumers, industry and media representatives. It was designed to enhance the WA Tourism Commission's online presence and showcase the products, information, services and resources related to tourism in WA.
  • Shared Land Information Platform (SLIP) represented the development of a single web-based access platform for all land and property information across government. SLIP incorporated shared spatial information infrastructure, hosting services and shared decision support tools.
"Planning for a co-ordinated, cohesive and holistic delivery of public services is complex and takes time," Dr Gallop said.
"The process does not stop here - it is ongoing.
"The e-Government Strategy for the WA Public Sector is intended to provide agencies and those organisations that work closely with Government with a clear picture of the State's strategic e-government direction."
Office of e-Government website is available at http://www.egov.dpc.wa.gov.au
Premier's Office - 9222 9475