The UK Government has announced a raft of measures aimed at getting Britain online, including enterprise tax benefits and a 1.7bn pound ‘computers for all’ initiative. The plans come as part of a budget package that puts the emphasis on encouraging hi-tech investment. Chancellor Gordon Brown said during his budget speech that The e-commerce industry is the greatest driver of world economic growth. Britain can no longer afford to lag behind America.
The stream of commitments to take business into the digital age include 20m pounds for venture capital investment in hi-tech enterprises, and a Small Business Service to advise companies on e-commerce strategies. The Chancellor set a target of one million small businesses having e-commerce capabilities by 2002.
Tax benefits to encourage the e-revolution are also part of the plan. Discounts will be given to companies that file their tax returns electronically, and legislation to allow employees to borrow computers from companies as a tax-free benefit will be brought in. An R&D tax credit was also announced, which would underwrite a third of R&D costs for small business at a cost of about 150m pounds per annum.
As well as helping the enterprise, Brown also announced measures to allow easy access to IT skills for the people of Britain. He announced the launch of a 1.7bn pound initiative which will see 1,000 community IT centers open around the UK. Twenty million was allocated to expand the scheme to give laptop computers to teachers, and a target of 32,000 schools connected to the internet, with 370,000 teachers computer-trained, was set. Brown said, There is one purpose only…to have the whole of Britain equipped for the information age.
