Press Advisories

29. 9. 2017 23:21

Prime Minister Sobotka: We promote a digital public administration model as a service that is easily available to citizens and safe

Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka attended a Digital Summit in Tallinn, 29 September 2017.
Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka attended a Digital Summit in Tallinn, 29 September 2017.
Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka participated in the Digital Summit of EU leaders on Thursday and Friday, 28 and 29 September 2017. At the informal dealing, the European statesmen dealt with the themes of innovation, cyber security, computerisation of public administration or free flow of data. The informal summit was preceded by a Thursday dinner of the EU state heads and prime ministers of governments, which was devoted to the progress in the European Union reform.

The EU leaders opened the digital summit in Tallinn, Estonia with an informal dinner on Thursday, where they discussed the future of European integration and progress in the EU reform, which began in Bratislava last autumn. The European statesmen agreed that communication needs to be accelerated so that decision-making on key issues does not last for several years. The President of the European Council should therefore introduce the proposals for streamlining communication between the leaders of the Member States as soon as possible. “We have also talked about multi-speed Europe, which is increasingly becoming a reality. For us, it is crucial that cooperation in different areas would remain open to all Member States. Europe must not become a closed club,” said Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka after the meeting.

Friday in Tallinn was dedicated to digital themes. The EU leaders talked, among others, about cyber security and agreed that Internet security is a priority for all Member States. In this connection, the Czech Republic intends to take an active part in the negotiation of the newly introduced cyber package. Thanks to advanced legislation and high-quality national capabilities, the CR is at the forefront of cyber security in the EU. “Ensuring the security and trust of citizens and companies in the Internet and digital technology is one of the preconditions for the successful development of the digital economy and society,” said the prime minister.

The European statesmen also discussed data localisation. The Czech government welcomed the Commission’s hearing of its voice and published a legislative proposal embedding the principle of free flow of non-personal data in the EU. The issue of computerisation of public administration did not remain aside, either. “For the Czech Republic, it is important to adhere to the “digital by default” and “data only once” principles. We promote a public administration model as a service that is easily accessible to citizens. In this context, the Czech government has adopted the E-Identity Card and Electronic Identification Act. By the end of next year, all state administration bodies will be ready to receive electronic invoices. We are also working on a new public administration information system, Citizen’s Portal, which will contain all the necessary information for public administration clients,” said Prime Minister Sobotka at the summit.

Last but not least, digitisation and the associated changes, which we can see in society or in the labour market, have been on today's agenda. The Czech Republic does not underestimate these challenges. Earlier this week, the Czech government approved the Action Plan for Society 4.0, which aims to respond to the fourth industrial revolution.

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