Canada’s $900 million Net sites:
p2pnet.net News:- Sheila Fraser , Canada’s shoot-from-the-hip auditor general, wonders about the millions of dollars Canada spends on building government internet services.
Almost $900 million has been ear-marked for online government services such as income tax filing or applying for unemployment insurance.
But, even if the services are built, many people won’t use them, says Fraser, quoted in a CBC report here.
Canada’s federal human resources department wants 85% of all unemployment applications filed on the internet by next year, says the4r CBC, but:
“In reality, the auditor general says Canadians still prefer the phone for contacting the government – especially about personal files.”
Two-thirds of the budget “of this massive internet project” is going toward protecting people’s personal information, says the CBC, adding:
“But the auditor general says no one has looked at the risks of the project, or built a business case for it. And no one has tested the services in sensitive, high-volume conditions.”
The government says it’s working on a business case for the new technology that should be ready this spring.
