An invitation to deliver the keynote speech on "The Government's Digital Strategy" is an opportunity not to be missed.  This issue is vitally important to the future of this country and affects each of us individually.  I welcome the contribution this forum will make to the discussion on how we go forward.

I want to talk about the quest for Digital Britain, to outline where we are now, and to set out our vision of where we want to be in the future.  I'll go on to say what the Government is doing to achieve that vision.

What has been achieved

I am enormously proud of what has been achieved.

In February 2001, the Government announced its target for "the UK to have the most extensive and competitive broadband market in the G7 by the end of 2005".  At the time the UK was at the bottom of the pile. 

We now have the most extensive Broadband market in the G7.

And we have the 3rd most competitive. 

And over 99% of households in the UK can access broadband.  That includes rural areas as well as urban and metropolitan centres. 

Broadband Prices are falling, speeds are increasing.  New technologies and markets are growing.  Consumer choice  - ADSL, wireless, 3G, fibre - means that the broadband option has become popular and accessible.  

A new connection is made every ten seconds. Subscribers are increasing by over seventy thousand (70,000) a week - with over 50% of all new connections now Broadband.

We are also beginning to see the long predicted convergence of telecoms, IT, broadcasting, media and content sectors offering companies and consumers the opportunity to do things differently and take advantage of integrated services. 

Progress indeed.  But new challenges are constantly appearing.

There are still a very small number, around 0.2% connected to a broadband enabled exchange, who are unable to get ADSL broadband because their line is too long, or their cabling is not copper. We need to find a workable solution for them. 

We are also seeing rapid changes in the provision of higher bandwidth services. Competition in local loop unbundling is hotting up, with speeds of up to 24mps being offered. We need to avoid the danger of facing another rural/urban divide in terms of access to services of this speed. It will take a collective effort, from central Government, RDA's, Devolved Administrations, Ofcom, the telecommunications companies and others to address this new challenge and we are already in discussion on the way forward.

So, with this progress, is Digital Britain now a reality?  Really I feel that I'm asking whether the glass is half full or half empty, so lets start with the positive.

The challenge of the digital divide

Certainly progress is being made.  Accessibility of the extensive infrastructure, means that technology is becoming an integral part of everyday life.  

For young people in education, for employees in their place of work and in the community for the delivery of services.

But not everyone is making use of the infrastructure and technology available.  And some people are excluded from using these resources.  

Evidence suggests a significant number of people - many from low-income backgrounds - are not benefiting.  

Use of the Internet is a key area.  

There is strong correlation between household income and Internet access. 

40% of children have no home access to the Internet.  Around 30% of our adult population have yet to access the resource. 

And some people are just not interested in ICT access. They have no motivation to try out the new technologies or they just don't see the point of them.

There is a danger that those excluded will lag behind because of basic lack of information and of fear or lack of confidence to learn the skills, which will unlock the Internet. 

Familiarity with the Internet brings many benefits, particularly for those low-income households.  Benefits such as increased public service access, improved employment prospects, financial and social benefits.   For the isolated, it is a lifeline.  For organisations, it is another tool in reaching the hard to reach groups, such as homeless people.

As a nation it is vital that we become comfortable with using technology.  It is essential that people have the opportunity to develop skills and confidence.

As a Government we are concerned because we see ICT as central to our objectives of economic productivity, social inclusion and public service reform.

We must bridge the digital divide by exploiting the many benefits the technology brings.  It gives us the chance to increase public service access, to improve employment prospects and to enhance educational, financial and social benefits.  This is not a UK only issue. The digital divide is common across all of Europe and one of the pillars of the i2010 agenda is aimed at tackling this problem.
 
Government strategy

So what is the Government response?

"Connecting the UK" launched in April 2005 is the Government's digital strategy aimed at encouraging greater take up and use of ICT by those currently not engaged. The numbers are uncertain, but an indication of the size of the problem is that around 30% of the population have never used the Internet.

The strategy is enormously significant for a number of reasons:

i) Represents a shift in focus away from infrastructure towards take-up and use. 

ii) It's a Cross Government initiative.  Only concerted action across Government as a whole will enable us face the issues of the digital world.

iii) It has top level commitment.  The Prime Minister has given his personal impetus to the strategy and I have the support of No 10 in moving this agenda forward.

iv) The Strategy is collaborative.  We are working with a wide range of partners - including industry, RDA's, social enterprise, voluntary and community organisations, local government and public bodies to realise the objectives.  
 
Economic and social potential of ICT

Economic potential is Central to Government strategy.  

The estimated long-term economic gains from broadband are between five billion and twenty two billion pounds per annum (£5-22 billion pa).  But gains will be dependent on widespread adoption and familiarity with ICT and broadband. 
 
Engaging the excluded

We need to reach out to the excluded and bring about social inclusion through the digital revolution.  We must engage older people in particular, as well as those with disabilities and the homeless. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has recently launched a report on inclusion through innovation, setting out how the transformative power of ICT can be used to reach the most marginalised in our society.

Example: "Sign Video Britain's only video contact centre for deaf people has launched a video service offering deaf people immediate access to qualified sign language interpreters to communicate with their local authorities and other public service organisations".

The key goal of the digital strategy is to increase take up and use of ICT by everyone, no matter what their circumstances are, so as to encourage digital inclusion and opportunity for all.  We are concentrating on number of key areas:

1. Skills
Skill in using ICT is key to incentivising people to use the technology.  95% of households are within 5km of a centre providing Internet access, technical support and training. 

Evidence suggests that open access centres are largely successful in meeting the learner needs from target groups within areas of deprivation.  Our strategy aims to build up the network of UK Online centres and other communal access points. 

2. Digital Challenge
There will be a Digital Challenge for local authorities.  A collaboration between the private and public sectors, the competition will challenge local authorities to display new and innovative services delivered digitally and that can be transferred elsewhere. Details are due to be announced later this month. 

"Julie Dean of South Yorkshire, made a piece of e-history last month when she applied for housing benefit using a PC, instead of the usual 25-page form. Sitting in front of a screen she answered a short set of questions targeted at her personal circumstances.

3. Equipment
The Government's Home Computer Initiative seeks to bring benefits to those currently unable to afford the kit.  We want to effectively target those groups with lowest take-up 

4. Content
There is no point in accessing the Internet if the information and entertainment available is of no use or interest to you. Funding is already available to encourage innovation and research in developing content and Government will set out guidance on broadband content procurement by the public sector, informed by industry perspective.  We also need to raise awareness across government departments about the potential of innovative broadband content in partnership with the creative and ICT industries, helping government become an 'intelligent' customer for procuring and commissioning innovative content. My own Department is leading this work.

5. Safe use of the Internet
We also want people to use ICT in a safe and secure environment.  The recently launched "Get Safe Online" tackles the serious problem of potential attack from Internet criminals. 

Evidence shows that 83% of the UK population don't know enough about protecting themselves online.  The "Get Safe Online" campaign will raise public awareness of issues and provide solutions through a one stop shop website of up to date information about online safety.   

6. Disabled access
The strategy highlights the importance of addressing access to the Internet for the disabled. Disability Rights Commission found 81% of websites fail to satisfy basic accessibility criteria.  The Government is committed to doing better; raising awareness of disabled issues and promoting best practice for public can private sectors.

Cross Government initiatives
 
Only concerted action across Government will allow us to meet the challenges of our future digital world. 

Transformation of public services is a key element of the Strategy.  Services need to be delivered with the same choice, speed and out of hours access that customers have become used to from good private sector services.  How we intend to do this is set out in the recently published Transformational Government strategy. At the heart of this strategy is how the use of ICT can deliver effective, targeted services for citizens, when and where they want them. 

We're putting significant investment into ICT:

Between 2003 and 2008, we are investing over two billion pounds (£2.24 billion) in the Criminal Justice System 

Healthcare is receiving, over two billion pounds (£2.3 billion) on ICT and services for NHS to April 2006.

Additional funding of fifty million pounds (£50 million) for schools to equip all secondary pupils with ICT at home.  Equipment is being purchased through a national procurement scheme. 

Closing remarks

The Government's digital strategy along with the related strategies on social inclusion and transformational government spells out the way forward. To succeed, we need to work collaboratively across government and with a range of partners from elsewhere in the public sector and with the private sector.  

I was struck by the recent report which showed that if a website falls below the requisite standards for people with visual impairment, it is generally poor for the rest of the population too.  It's inaccessible for all of us.  So meeting access standards makes good business sense as well as being an equality issue.

We want to create opportunities for all.  By giving everyone opportunities to access new technology and by teaching them the skills to use it most effectively we go a long way reducing social exclusion, narrowing the digital divide and help the UK maximize the benefits to be achieved through effective use of ICT.