Brussels, 16/04/2002 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has just launched an on-line consultation service for the needs of citizens and enterprises for government e-services at a European level within the framework of the IDA (Interchange of Data between Administrations) programme. This consultation should help the Commission and Member States to identify the needs and opportunities of EU enterprises and citizens in terms of pan-European government e-services. EU Member States are currently putting in place government e-services for enterprises and citizens that include web sites, one stop shops, downloadable forms, electronic transactions, interactive services, electronic forms, etc. The Commission believes, however, that there is a risk that that the development of government e-services may inadvertently result in the erection of barriers to the continued development of the Internal Market and the associated freedoms of movement. This would happen if citizens and enterprises that need to transact business electronically with a national public administration other than their own were unable do so. These concerns have been expressed on a number of occasions, notably at a Council level and their cogency attested in several studies. The main observation demonstrates that it is very difficult to access the entire range of electronic services from abroad. The studies showed that the Pan-European dimension of government e-services could be considerably expanded. E-services are envisaged to become a major channel for enterprises and citizens in dealing with government, the Commission is now seeking the views and recommendations of all relevant stakeholders (both enterprises and citizens) to help it assess policy options on the trans-border access to government e-services. Everyone who makes use of government e-services, particularly those who have a need to interact with public administrations across Europe's borders, are invited to submit their contributions by 17th June. Further information http: //europa.eu.int/comm/enterprise/consultations/government_e-services/index.htm