Ethics

Frank Bannister of Trinity College, Dublin has argued in a paper written with Steven

Lalor of the Department of the Taoseach in Ireland that the ability of the Government to

collect and use information about citizens at speed calls for a code of ethics. Their paper

states that  a framework cannot supply instant answers to all ethical dilemmas and 

conflicts, but it can provide an environment within which actions can be taken .

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The authors of this report claim that Europe has been slow to address ethical issues in

the e government context and has much to learn from the United States. 

Resources

One of the major differences between countries that emerged in this study was the issue

of ICT infrastructure. It ranged from not being an issue   in Finland and the USA   to

being one of the major issues   in Australia and the UK. Where bandwidth is not a 

problem, resources can be used to provide more computers, more sophisticated web 

sites, or greater community involvement. Where it is an issue, a great deal of the 

available money is taken up by providing barely adequate connectivity. Targets such as

the People's Network (and its lack of resource provision after three years), and the

Canadian and UK Governments' Milestones of 2004 and 2005, respectively, highlight

the need for significant infrastructure and revenue investment. 

In many countries, the rhetoric of e government is seriously undermined by inadequate

and expensive infrastructure. In Australian capital cities, the present domestic standard is

a V90 modem, a slow form of Internet connection, adequate for text but not for graphics,

audio or video. It costs AUD$45 (US$24) per month for unlimited access, which usually

includes an e mail address and web space on the ISP's server. It is able to reach a data rate

of up to 56 Kbps (kilobytes per second) over a standard copper pair telephone line. This

connection speed will only allow slow motion video, and the distance between the

exchange and the subscriber affects speed. Typically in urban areas, it reaches some 33

Kbps, although in rural areas, services can be far more impaired. ASDL (Asymmetrical

Digital Subscriber Line) is being held up as the promise of the future. It is a fast form of

Internet access that uses new technology on existing phone lines. It is fast enough for

audio and video service, but is more expensive than V90 modem access. It will not be

available, however, in rural and remote areas, where bandwidth and connectivity 

continue to be the great barriers to provision of online services. While metropolitan

libraries can afford ISDN lines, small rural, remote public libraries depend on very inad 

equate infrastructure.

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