Ian Cuddy

Councils will be commanded to provide content for a new, Local Directgov-style government website for businesses which may have significant IT implications for local authorities, it transpires.

Under the plans, councils will be 'required' to identify pages on their websites covering information and services for businesses and supply a list of weblinks.

These 'deep-links' will be used to populate a new online 'Point of Single Contact' (PSC) for doing business in UK which is currently being developed by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR).

Though councils have yet to be informed of this national link-gathering exercise, PSF understands they will be expected to provide these links by the end of July.  The PSC website itself will be provided through the Business Link portal and its counterparts in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

The BERR needs to set up the website to satisfy the European Union Services Directive which requires Member States to make it easier for companies to find out how to set up in EU countries, completing all such formalities through an online 'Point of Single Contact'.  The Directive was agreed at the end of 2006 and must be implemented into UK law and practices by 28 December 2009, when the PSC website is due to launch.

PSF understands the link-gathering mechanism used by Local Directgov in 2006, which was nominated for an award, may be resurrected for the exercise.

Local Directgov quietly published brief details of the plans last month, at the bottom of its first newsletter for councils which can be found buried away here in a corner of its website. The aforesaid newsletter said of the Point of Single Contact:  'The site is currently under development, so please refer to the BERR website for current and detailed information.

'Local Authorities websites [sic] must also supply the business information that service providers require such as, how they can apply for a permit or licence and how public registers and databases on providers and services can be accessed.

'BERR will shortly be commissioning syndicated material from recognised authorities which would allow LAs [Local Authorities] to present a mix of locally generated and national best-practice content to site visitors. They will also be required to supply 'deep links' to their sites, so that anyone requiring particular information is sent directly to the relevant web page.'

Unfortunately the link above given by Local Directgov - www.berr.gov.uk/psc - leads to a 'Page Not Found' error message, however councils can find the relevant information below:

• BERR Introduction to the Services Directive
• BERR guidance for local authorities – February 2009
• European Commission handbook on implementing the Services Directive

However that's not all – the Services Directive will have further IT ramifications for councils. Firstly, according to the BERR's February guidance, councils must enable EU businesses to complete all their transactions online in order to comply with the Directive.  Councils will also need to configure their IT and those of their suppliers so they can interface with a national IT system also currently in development. Their progress against deadlines will also be shown on a website. Selected relevant passages are quoted below.

• Applications, plus any supporting documents and any fee payment must be able to be processed elecronically and the local authority must be able to notify the success or failure electronically. 'The PSC will have the capacity to allow service providers and local authorities to exchange documents, such as premises plan, electronically.'
• 'If Local Authorities offer online services already, or wish to reap the full benefits of integration with back-office systems from December 2009, they can offer their own online service to which the PSC will link.'
• 'Local Authorities will have to accept fees online by either extending their existing online payment solutions or using a commercial payment service.'
• 'There will also be a facility for Local Authorities and service providers to exchange secure messages, with an audit trail kept... The PSC will give Local Authorities some reminders that they need to complete activities but will NOT manage the process for them. It will be possible to send automated responses for some stages of the process.'
• 'From December 2009, the PSC’s online forms service will require Local Authority staff to log in to the service and download forms and attachments. Facilities will be given to Local Authorities to manage and configure this process, but the PSC is not a replacement for a Local Authority’s back office technology. BERR is committed to offering an open, published interface to Local Authorities and their IT suppliers, so that data can be automatically transferred between the PSC and back office systems. This will be available in 2010.'
• 'All Local Authorities using the BERR service will be provided with web access to their transactions and messages and a secure connection will be required for this.' The guidance goes on to say that councils in England and Wales will use the Government Connect Secure Network (GCSx), the GSX in Scotland while plans for Northern Ireland are still being drawn up.
• 'While BERR will provide a means of online communication with service providers, it will remain the Local Authority’s responsibility to process applications and provide the necessary IT infrastructure. The basic online forms service will be free of charge to Local Authorities during the current public spending round.'
• The guidance also promises online workshops and training will be available to councils. It adds: 'Given the complexity of the PSC, a series of deadlines will need to be adhered to. These are shown on the website at www.berr.gov.uk/psc. A measure, called “Readiness Level”, will be used to provide a simple measure of how Local Authorities are progressing towards implementation of the PSC, by showing which key milestone they have reached.'

So all rather significant stuff then. Watch this space for more.