Find Cheap Broadband Deals For Your Area
Postcode:
The newly appointed government post for a ‘digital inclusion champion’ has been filled by Martha Lane Fox, who this week has announced she will be focusing on bringing the internet to the 6 million poorest people in the country – quite a noble goal although details on how this is going to work are somewhat thin on the ground right now.
You may not have noticed that the post even existed, but Ms Fox was appointed over a month ago and while the title might seem rather silly, the actual job of bridging the digital divide is quite an important one, bringing together the ‘social’ side of why people aren’t on the net while the Digital Britain report focuses on the more technical part of things.
Ms Fox – who is also the co founder of popular holiday site Lastminute.com – said that a large amount of people who don’t have the net (around 17 million of them) see it as an expense they can’t afford. These people are missing out because of this, especially as more and more jobs and government services move online. It’s worth noting that some people simply aren’t that interesting in having the net, however.
Ms Fox stated: “We are really going to focus, I hope, on the six million that are at the bottom of the pile. Partly because that’s the right thing to do and partly because we know quite a lot about these people – who they are and where they live.”
“It should matter to all of us because 80 per cent of government interactions are with the bottom 25 per cent of society. By keeping that 25 per cent offline you are inherently keeping the cost of government high.”
Her speech at the Reboot Britain conference in London last week was the first time she has spoke publically since her appointment in June. The post for Digital Champion lasts for two years and is to be used to help the 17 million who aren’t already online to make the move. Ms Fox said last month that she felt lucky to be chosen and was excited about the post.
Here’s hoping she can actually make a difference!
Leave your response!