The electronic delivery of services through a single point of contact is being progressed through the framework of the public services broker and the Reach agency, which reports to my colleague, the Minister for Social and Family Affairs.
In advance of completion of the public service broker, my Department, as per the joint programme, has embarked on an ambitious e-Government agenda aimed at ensuring that the public have electronic access to services.
These services include access to the Patents Office registers, databases and official journals. The Companies Registration Office provides e-forms for registering a business and filing returns, on-line database searching and calculation of late filing penalties. An on-line redundancy calculator is also available and enables the calculation of statutory redundancy entitlements for an employee.
The BASIS website, www.basis.ie, which was developed by my Department is a one-stop-shop for all public sector information on services that are relevant to the business community. This information is presented in an integrated way, based around the everyday actions of a business like employing staff, funding and expanding one’s business.
New e-services that are under development in my Department include the on-line payment of trademark, patent and industrial design renewal fees; an electronic application and payment system for work permits; the on-line payment of certain Companies Registration Office fees; and a system for on-line submission of redundancy claims for workers and applications for redundancy rebates for employers.
To ensure the continued development of on-line services a review of the Department's e-strategy is scheduled to be carried out in the last quarter of this year. Links to all existing and new services will be available through the single point of contact, reachservices.ie, as and when the public service broker is fully implemented.