Presidência do Conselho de Ministros (Presidency of the Council of Ministers)
Resolution of the Council of Ministers
The Technological Plan, as a central element of the strategy of the 17th Constitutional Government to promote a sustained development in Portugal, by mobilising the country towards an information society, concerns an action plan intended to implement an articulated set of policies that aim an enhancing the creation, dissemination, absorption and use of knowledge as the leverage to transform Portugal into a dynamic economy, able to prove itself as part of the global economy. This transformation is achieved by modernizing the Public Administration, adjusting it to growth objectives, and by simplifying and dematerialising the respective procedures, for the benefit of citizens and companies.
In the scope of axis no. 1, “Knowledge - To qualify the Portuguese for the knowledge society”, the Technological Plan acknowledges that the mobilisation towards an inclusive information society depends heavily on increasing general access to the information and communication technologies. Thus, in parallel with other initiatives, a set of clear guidelines for the modernization of the Public Administration must be provided for, concentrating public efforts on a limited and clearly defined universe of main actions, to which shall be attached a diversified set of other actions in the scope of the defined strategic guidelines.
The Public Administration modernization, however, is a transversal all-embracing measure covering the whole Technological Plan. Notwithstanding the fact that the reform of the State and of the Public Administration are subject to specific programmes, being namely incumbent upon the “Unidade de Coordenação da Modernização Administrativa” (Coordination Unit for Administrative Modernization) to identify the priority measures, the Technological Plan, in the context of its action scope, focuses transversally on these areas, and enhances, on account of policy mix, the effectiveness of the intervention.
For this reason, the Technological Plan, in the chapter on “transversal dimensions” acknowledges the potential of a more intensive use of information and communication technologies, which generate new opportunities for the electronic government, rendering the State closer to its users, namely by simplifying the access of citizens to public services. And, while this access is already in full swing, namely by means of initiatives such as the Citizen Web Portal, which is a case of success in the relationship between the State and people, it is now time to broaden the electronic path to other means of communication between the State and individuals. As in other countries of the European Union, an attempt is now being made to establish a regime of electronic communications between the State, citizens and companies and which, integrated with the traditional postal mail, contributes towards easy, swift and effective communications between these participants, individuals being also given the possibility of using this regime in the scope of contractual relationships engaged with other private service providers. It must be stressed that the establishment of a public electronic mailbox service will not have any financial impact, either present or future, on the State.
The Minister for Public Works, Transport and Communications undertakes a special role in this matter, as promoter of the public service to be established, in view of the fact that, under the respective organic law, he is responsible for the development and optimisation of the traditional communication means, as well as for the offer of new telecommunications postal services.
Therefore:
Pursuant to point g) of article 199 of the Constitution, the Council of Ministers hereby resolves:
1 - To determine the creation of a public service that enables that voluntary communications are established between services and bodies of the State’s direct, indirect and autonomous administration, independent administrative bodies, courts, citizens and companies, by sending such communications by email to a nominal electronic mailbox, hereinafter referred to as EMB.
2 -To determine that the use of the EMB for this purpose complies with the following principles:
a) The EMB service shall be provided in a competition regime, without prejudice to the appointment of an entity that ensures the effective provision thereof continuously and permanently, as a public service;
b) The reception through the EMB of mail from the Public Administration shall be the result of a voluntary membership;
c) The EMB ensures the security, confidentiality and integrity of communications and contents thereof;
d) Each citizen or company shall be provided with one EMB only for the reception of communications from the entities provided for in the preceding paragraph, regardless of the service provider, under the terms to be laid down in a regulation. This EMB must be attached to at least one physical postal address associated to the holder’s general or special domicile, in order to enable, where appropriate, the forwarding of electronic communications to the corresponding traditional postal addresses;
e) The reception in the EMB of communications from the entities provided for in the preceding paragraph may coexist with the reception of communications from private entities, selected voluntarily by the EMB holder.
3 - To determine that the legal framework of the EMB must be provided for, namely as regards the determination of the entity responsible for guaranteeing the provision thereof as a public service, as well as the form and effects of communications to be performed in this way.
4 - To determine the promotion of a concerted evaluation between services and bodies of the Public Administration which take part in notification procedures with punitive effects, in order to ensure that the resort to the EMB occurs with the safeguard of all applicable legal provisions.
5 - To determine that the implementation of the EMB regime be articulated with the Entidade de Certificação Electrónica do Estado - Infra-Estrutura de Chaves Públicas - ECEE - ICP (State’s Electronic Certification Body - Public Key Infrastructure) for purposes of security and electronic certification of transactions, services and communications which demand the corresponding procedure requirements.
6 - To determine that it is incumbent upon the Minister for Public Works, Transport and Communications to promote and monitor the creation of the pubic service under consideration, in a close connection with the “Unidade de Coordenação da Modernização Administrativa” (Coordination Unit for Administrative Modernization) and with the national coordinators of the Lisbon Strategy and the Technological Plan, who shall regularly inform the Government, through the Prime-Minister, about the implementation of transversal measures deemed necessary to the application of the referred public service.
7 - To determine that the creation of the EMB shall take into account the inclusion of citizens with special needs in the information society, namely by complying with guidelines established in the Resolution of the Council of Ministers no. 97/99 of 26 August.
The Presidency of the Council of Ministers, 13 April 2006. - The Prime-Minister, José Sócrates Carvalho Pinto de Sousa.
