MP attacks 'four-offices Pinder'

The e-envoy, whose role is to unify the electronic delivery of public services, has his effectiveness crippled by spreading his offices over four different locations.

The e-envoy's staff currently work from four different London locations - Stockley House near Victoria, Parliament Street, Matthew Parker Street in Westminster, and Admiralty Arch near Trafalgar Square.

Conservative MP Ian Bruce, who is also chairman of the European Information Society Group, Eurim, said: "The office of the e-envoy was meant to be a one-stop-shop for e-government and ebusiness."

"Having four separate offices shows that it has become like the rest of the civil service, just jobs for the boys," he added.

A spokesman for e-envoy said: "As criticisms go, this has to be one of the more feeble. Senior members of the e-envoy's office are in regular contact, and the offices are closely located. In the age of e-connectivity, this is a very tenuous point to make."

He also added that the e-envoy's office was currently being relocated, and was due to be reunited in Stockley House by the end of June.