IT, Technology, and the General election

I have visited some IT and technology related blogs recently, and found a lot of misinformation about. I thought I would post here what you can find on the Conservative party website. The information is all there. One of the reasons I first got involved in politics, was down to the introduction of IR35. As was usual with the Brown/Blair administration, this was not in the headlines of the budget, but in the small print. The aim of the legislation may have been laudable, but the outcome has been farcical. It has cost both IT contractors and the country a lot of money for nothing. If you are in IT please read through the following links. The blog may read a bit strange, but it is a collection of replies/cut and paste to other blogs.

From the Conservative Technology Manifesto:

“The Labour Government have spent more per capita than any other government in Europe on IT – but too much money has been wasted on failed projects, and they have failed to use these procurement projects to stimulate innovation and growth in the economy. Conservative government will open up government IT procurement to innovative new companies and small businesses. Under Labour, just nine IT companies received 60% of public sector IT spending. We can’t go on like this.”http://www.conservatives.com/News/News_stories/2010/03/Conservative_Technology_Manifesto_launched.aspx

Conservative will provide a boost to British business and help create highly paid new jobs across the country. Our plans will give Britain the fastest high speed broadband network in Europe, helping to create 600,000 additional jobs. Conservatives will make the British government the most technology-friendly in the world, and meet the ambition that the next generation of Googles, Microsofts and Facebooks are British companies.

See “Where we Stand” – The Conservative goal is simple: to make Britain the easiest and the best place in the world to set up and grow a business.
http://www.conservatives.com/Policy/Where_we_stand/Business.aspx

Mark Prisk, the Shadow Business Minister, has announced that a Conservative Government would undertake a full and fundamental review of small business taxation, including IR35.

The aim will be to provide a simpler, clearer and lasting tax regime, so businesses can plan with confidence.

"For the last 13 years, Labour have constantly meddled with the tax rules for freelancers and self-employed, Prisk said. "IR35 has especially proved to over-complex, uncertain and often unfair".

IR35 has cost business £73 million over 10 years but it has barely raised revenue for the Treasury. Prisk criticised Gordon Brown for making it harder to be self-employed at a time when Britain should be open for business.

"This is why a Conservative Government would mandate the independent Office of Tax Simplification to undertake a fundamental review of current arrangements with the aim of providing a clearer, lasting and fairer tax regime".

http://www.conservatives.com/News/News_stories/2010/03/Conservative_tax_reform_to_aid_self_employed.aspx