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Government to drive technology boost for UK businesses

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The EU Commission has today published details on how businesses across the UK could better access technologies to help them innovate.

As part of the plans, businesses would receive improved access to cloud computing and services, data analytics and the Internet of Things.

Business Minister Baroness Neville-Rolfe said in a statement: “The fourth industrial revolution will fundamentally change the way we do business in this country. As with previous industrial revolutions, the expectation must be that the net effect will be positive for almost everyone.

“The package set out by the European Commission contains stimulating ideas about how businesses can embrace new and interesting ways of working. I look forward to working with the Commission on a package that works for UK businesses and agreeing a way forward in the Competitiveness Council,” she concluded.

The statement continued to say that the package would build on existing work going on in the UK, such as digital catapults and support for quantum technologies.

The package sets out suggestions in four areas of working:

  1. Digitising European Industry, which sets out how the European Commission will help industries to take advantage of digital technologies; supporting collaboration between EU and UK high value manufacturing,
  2. European Cloud Initiative, to be used by the science community, which could include making scientific data generated by the Horizon 2020 programme open by default,
  3. Priorities for ICT Standardisation, which will help to make it easier for British businesses to operate in the Single Market, and
  4. An eGovernent Action Plan 2016 – 2020, which will help to modernise public administration, making it easier for UK citizens and businesses to access government services in other European countries.

The actions will be partly funded by Horizon 2020, an EU research and innovation programme with €80 billion of funding available over 7 years (2014 to 2020), alongside private investment.

Government is now expected to consider the proposals in the package and work with the EU institutions to ensure that the package works for the UK’s industry.

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