For many millions of people the internet has become the preferred way of conducting many everyday transactions, from banking to booking a holiday. The internet is often faster, easier to use and more convenient, with services available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It has also become an important way of improving the delivery of public services. The government spends an estimated £208 million a year on delivering services and related information online, such as the renewal of vehicle excise duty, the filing of tax returns and for the matching of applicants to jobs. In 2002, our predecessors concluded that there had been a lack.
