Digital divide remains a British e-government hurdle

By Davey Winder
Monday, 23 March 2009 04:16

Government Tech Policy

More Brits than ever are participating in online citizenship activity, but the digital divide is still a reality for many and could disenfranchise them in the near future.

The newly published Citizens’ Digital Participation research report from Ofcom, the independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries, reveals that Brits do not necessarily identify their actions as citizen participation. But more of them than ever are participating nonetheless.

[mosloadposition davey08]Ofcom says that the great majority of the UK general population, 75 percent in the last year, have taken part in citizen participation of some kind, either offline or online.

Interestingly, those who live in areas of multiple deprivation engage less in citizen participation activities when compared to the general population. However, those with the Internet at home showed higher levels of participation across all groups and that includes the ones living in areas of multiple deprivation.

The Internet is only used for citizen participation by a meagre 13 percent of the general population, but 42 percent have used it for a related activity such as government form filling for example.

Defining citizen participation as being interacting with democratic institutions such as registering to vote in elections or donating money to a political party, signing petitions or taking part in demonstrations and volunteering or doing unpaid work.

17 percent with home Internet access participated, with 55 percent taking part in related citizen activities. Related activity being defined as completing a tax return or getting information about local government services for example.

When it came to those areas of multiple deprivation in the UK, then only 10 percent used the internet for citizen participation, and just 15 percent for a related activity.

The government has committed to increasing the number of services, both local and central, being delivered online. But Ofcom warns that a proportion of the UK population may become disenfranchised due to the digital divide.

"Digital communications have provided new channels for people to interact with democratic institutions and to become engaged in a range of activities associated with citizen participation" Ofcom says, adding "a significant section of the population, lacking access to these technologies or the confidence to use them, may become increasingly disengaged."

Ed Richards, head of Ofcom, recently told a meeting at the London School of Economics that 40 percent of homes in the UK do not have access to broadband and half them didn't want it even though they could afford it. Whether self-excluded or not, 20 percent of Brits could be left behind by e-government.