Britain can boost e-readiness, expert says

Written by Paul Sells

The UK is in a good position to improve its e-readiness, an expert has claimed.

Last week, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) reported that Britain's e-readiness - or its ability to harness ICT for development - has fallen from eighth to 13th place in its study of 70 countries.

Commenting on the findings, Stephen Hearnden, director of telecommunications and technology at Intellect, suggested that they are not as bad as they seem at first.

He explained: "We and only two or three other countries in the world are looking for a universal service commitment to bring two megabits to every home."

Mr Hearnden said that this could see the UK move up the table "quite quickly" once it is implemented.

The expert also claimed that Britain's broadband delivery is one of the world's most competitive, while the government is maintaining its commitment to use IT in its services.

According to the EIU report, all but nine of the 70 countries covered in the 2009 research declined in performance, with Denmark moving up to take the top spot.