Taskforce 2000, the fourteen month old unit set up by the UK Department of Trade and Industry to raise awareness of the Year 2000 computer problem, now faces an uncertain future itself. Speaking at the ruling Labour party conference in Brighton this week, trade and industry secretary Margaret Beckett announced plans to launch a new body, with 1m pounds of government funding. The role of the organization, called Action 2000, will be to co- ordinate the efforts to fix the so-called millennium bug. Robin Guernier, executive director of Taskforce 2000, says he’s not sure where that will leave his own organization, which is jointly sponsored by the public purse and private industry. Guenier, who went on the record last month to criticize the government’s lack of financial support for Taskforce 2000 (CI No 3,251) said We could close, I don’t know. It may be decided we’re not the best vehicle for fixing the problem. Talking at a Computers in Manufacturing event yesterday, Guenier said that most manufacturing businesses in the UK were still exhibiting a worrying lack of understanding as to the scale of the Year 2000 problem.
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