E-Government

E-Government, also known as e-gov in short hand, is a term describing the use of online features and technologies by means of the government to distribute and collect information to and from the general public. The main use of this connection of the public and government via the means of the internet is to deal with everyday problems and situations that may occur outside of the internet and, in some cases, inside the internet; although the group that benefits the most is the government, as the internet applications are used to aid in government affairs. The use of e-gov has been around for many years but not necessarily as obvious as it is now and especially not on the internet as it commonly is featured on today. Before the use of e-gov on the internet governments and political figures would use other means of communicating to the public by means of the radio, T.V broadcasts, fax machines etc. Nowadays the internet is usually the answer to receiving and sending government information and services. I am going to focus on the aspect of websites that feature help for the public and to make them less dependent on the government. I have listed three common services and information features that are used by the government to gain data, but are for the general public to use:

-Job centres.

-NHS Direct.

-Kent Police

Job Centres:

Online Job Centres are the most commonly used features of e-government to date. There are many sites on the internet all eager to provided the necessary information for the public to get into work as quickly and efficiently as they can. Finding a site that provides information on the country you are living can be quite tricky, as there are many for such places like Ireland which won’t apply for the U.K. One site, however, that does apply for the U.K is a site by the name of Jobcentre Plus. Jobcentre Plus is a government agency for people hoping to find work in the U.K. The site features three type boxes, two of which have drop down boxes for a variety of options in the vicinity you are living in and the style of work you are hoping to find. Lower down the page the site gives a brief description of what the site intends to do for the user, it states; “Job Centre is a government run organisation and this site has no affiliation with it, instead we offer access to categorised job searches that will put you one step ahead of your competition The job centre plus has offices all over the country and these are one of many places to find jobs using their job terminals which list up to the minute vacancies across the country. Not only that but this is where you come to collect your jobseekers allowance each week to support you while you are out of work.” Although Jobcentres Plus has now acquired a much larger site, one that is slightly more easier to use and features many more services such as part time or voluntary work searches, information about student finances and even help on your passport.

NHS Direct:

NHS Direct, NHS standing for Nation Health Service, is the health advice and information service provided for the people of England, with advice offered 24/7 throughout the year. Services included are by means of telephone contact on the national 0845 46 47 number, a web based symptom checker, and via mobile, with Apps for such appliances like the iPhone. As a part of the National Health Service, all NHS Direct services are free at the point of care. As well as these core services there are a number of commissioned services such as specialized support for patients with long term conditions and illnesses, access to GP, General Practitioner and dental healthcare. The web based symptom checker is a very useful feature of the NHS site, as this allows people with not so serious illnesses to see what they can do to help themselves. This then means that the NHS staff can concentrate on those with more serious illnesses or conditions that otherwise and let those at home care for themselves. Everything is very easy to find on the homepage and is clearly linked with the other features of the site to give as much help and advice as they possibly can.

Kent Police:

The Kent Police is the territorial police force for Kent, in England. The force covers an area close to the vicinity of 1,443 square miles, being 3,740 km, with a population of over 1,660,000 people. Not only does is the force expected to protect the citizens of Kent but they also have an overseas force in France where they have teamed up with other U.K and European forces to help protect the channel tunnel of Dover. Some main features of the Kent Police website is the feature to take a look at your local area’s level of crime and the statistics, reporting a non-serious crime or offense that has been troubling you and your neighbourhood online and the fact that the general public can have their say in policing matters and affairs; and also to give reviews on how well they are doing their jobs. The site also offers dozens of information in the areas of ‘County News’ and ‘Local News Highlights’ about affairs that have happened recently within the policing community and how it may have affected you or whether you have any information to help the procedure along. The Kent Police website is also home to three different fan bases, all of which offer some information regard the police force, these being a YouTube profile, Facebook fan page and Twitter news feed.

Advantages to E-Government:

-Makes the public feel involved, thus stemming a healthier relationship with the government.

-Offers services and information relatively quickly and promptly when needed.

-Some matters of the government require the public to bring their views across, such as the reviews of Kent Police.

-If information needs to be sent out to the public, email’s, news feeds on homepages and fan bases means a less cost effective way to get the information out there.

-Information is usually much more accessible on the internet compared to in person.

Disadvantages to E-Government:

-Many people feel secure in terms of face to face contact with members of the government and that connection is lost through e-government.

-Fear of spamming and virus’s through unwanted chain mail can lead the public to move away from e-government as most, if not all, services require an email address to ‘log in’ to the service.

-The fact that e-government is done over a computer and may only require a limited number of staff means that many other members of staff will lose out on jobs.

-Those with little knowledge of the internet and e-government will struggle to acquire the information they are looking for, or providing it for the government to collect, as e-government does require a certain amount of know-how to be a part of its community.

My Experience:

The only time I have ever used a service from e-government was to find a part time job, which was only fairly recently. I went onto a site known as Tunbridge Wells Local Jobs to help me find a job that was close to home and had a fairly good pay. I had used several other search engines to help me, but most of those were unhelpful and had way too many full time centres , of which I unable to do. There have been many instances in which I have seen advertisements or news feeds come up on my internet home page regarding the feature of voting and online surveys for the government. An example being once I receive my pay check via email, there is a link that asks to complete a survey on the efficiency of the council and how they can improve their services but, as of yet, I have not completed one as my first pay check by email came only recently.