Australia recognised as leader in digital government

The Turnbull Government has again been recognised as a global leader in digital transformation, with Australia retaining its ranking as number two in the world for the delivery of online services.

The United Nations 2018 E-Government Survey praised Australia’s ongoing efforts to improve the lives of its citizens through the delivery of simpler and more convenient services.

Australia has held the number two spot since 2014 and was this year beaten only by Denmark, which replaced the United Kingdom in the number one spot. The UK has slipped to number four.

Acting Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Digital Transformation Dan Tehan said the result reflected the Turnbull Government’s strong commitment to transform Australia’s digital landscape.

“The world is undergoing a digital revolution and the Coalition Government is determined that Australia remain at the forefront of the curve to ensure we maximise the enormous benefits on offer for both our citizens and our economy,” Mr Tehan said.

“Technology enables us to make life easier for busy people by bringing the services they need to their doorstep, rather than requiring them to stand in queues or wait on the phone to do business with government.

“Measures like the new Consumer Data Right outlined in this year’s budget will also harness the power of data to enable consumers to find better deals on services like banking, communications and energy.”

In its report, the UN cited the Turnbull Government’s decision to create a Digital Transformation Agency as one of the reasons behind Australia’s consistently strong performance. Efforts to improve data sharing within government such as the signing of the Open Data Charter in April 2017 were also highlighted, as was Australia’s leadership in the field of cyber security.

“Our current ranking also highlights how far Australia has come in just a few short years since Labor was last in power,” Mr Tehan said. “Labor regularly criticizes our efforts, but Australia didn’t even feature in the global top 10 for e-government when they were in charge.”

The full report is available at: https://publicadministration.un.org/egovkb/en-us/Reports/UN-E-Government-Survey-2018