Canadians will soon be able to access more federal government services and apply for them online – from passports to payments, according to Canada’s first Minister of Citizens Services, Terry Beech.

Beech also stated that he is open to innovation and using new technologies such as artificial intelligence to improve the way the government delivers services to Canadians.

Beech's appointment to the newly created position comes at a time when the government has faced threats in the headlines and opposition in recent months due to issues with delivering essential services to Canadians.

Among the programs Beech hopes to oversee is the new national dental plan. One of Beech's priorities will be to make federal government services for Canadians "digital first" and "digital by design."

Beech noted, "I’m sure there will be some people who will feel anxious when we talk about digital first, but that doesn’t mean we won’t have in-person or phone options."

Beech explained that "one area that is seeing major changes is passports, and there is a new retrieval system that will be more efficient, called Tempo, and there are new printers for new passports that are five times faster than the old systems."

He added that "the way Canadians apply for passports will change as well."

He also confirmed that in the future, there will be no need to go to passport offices or Service Canada offices, and if one chooses to go to a passport office, the number of queues will be significantly reduced, as those who prefer to deal with the Canadian government online will have the ability to do so.

Updating the outdated infrastructure:

He said that some government services, such as Old Age Security (OAS) payments, have not been updated in years.

Beech clarified that when Trudeau asked him to take on the role, he mentioned that there would be a digital component, as part of the departmental cabinet shuffle, and oversight of the Canadian digital service would be transferred from the Treasury Board to the Canadian Department of Employment and Social Development.

He added, "I have a background in technology and I have a background in customer service, and I am an entrepreneur, so the fact that I am responsible for the new department gives me this opportunity for entrepreneurship, but with the Canadian digital service, there is a tremendous opportunity to enhance customer service for Canadians."

Beech also wanted the delivery of government services to be more accountable and transparent, for example, by making data related to service standards and call times public.

He is also interested in exploring ways that artificial intelligence could improve the delivery of government services.

In the end, Beech said that his goal is to make the delivery of federal government services faster, safer, and easier to use.