IT and society: Digital exclusion still a major concern for UK Government

Experts speaking at an event marking the launch the European Commission e-Skills week have said that the government needs to set up an effective communications infrastructure, promote IT education and develop interactive government websites in order to tackle the growing digital divide in the UK. The e-Skills Week organised by the European Commission aims to highlight the importance of IT education and skills among European students, IT workers and organisations. 

The event brought together students, young IT professionals and employers. Taking place at the Department for Business Innovation and Skills involved representatives of several governmental and non-governmental organizations. 

The opening speech at the event was given by the Digital Britain Minister Stephen Timms, who, apart from listing the provisions being taken by the government to bring the Internet to every home in Britain, also added that currently there were 11 million people in Britain who had not accessed the Internet in a long time. 

European Commission principal administrator André Richier said that the first measure to tackle digital divide is to develop interactive government web sites that are able to guide and help the citizens in order to learn the basic skills required to use the Internet.