Recommendations

1. Agree to endorse the thrust of the ICT Taskforce's strategy to grow the ICT sector, namely to support ICT companies to grow to a scale to enable them to compete globally;

2. Note the suggested growth target of growing a further 100 ICT companies through the annual sales level of $100 million per company over the next 10 years and that this would require an annual growth rate in the ICT sector of 13%;

3. Note that recent government policies have been agreed and are being implemented to improve the responsiveness of education, training and immigration policy to industry needs, and that responding to the recommendations of the Taskforce will provide an opportunity to ensure these work in practice;

4. Note that NZTE in association with the ICT Implementation Body - once established - will jointly organise a workshop by December 2003 of public and private sector stakeholders including TEC and the Department of Labour to identify how best to address the skills and training issues raised by the taskforce;

5. Note that the taskforce identified as a key issue the need for research on the future skill requirements of the ICT sector and that the Department of Labour will work with the ICT Implementation Body - once established - on how best to address this issue;

6. Note that a range of initiatives to ensure the local ICT industry has full and fair opportunity to compete for government ICT contracts will be undertaken, in particular immediate convening of an ICT procurement working group by MED and advising Ministers on the effectiveness of government procurement policy in general, buyer and vendor education initiatives, and inclusion of a requirement to monitor the effectiveness of government procurement policy generally in MED's statement of intent;

7. Direct MED and NZTE to jointly report within twelve months to the Minister of lnformation Technology, the Minister for Economic Development and the Associate Minister of Commerce, on the implementation and effectiveness of the initiatives in recommendation 6 above;

8. Note that recommendations regarding regulatory and tax changes are either addressed in the Business Law Reform Bill or are the subject of current work programmes, and that IRD and Treasury will provide a report to Ministers on tax changes by December 2003;

9. Note that the ICT Taskforce recommended that an Implementation Body (HiGrowth) be established to act as a project team to drive implementation of the ICT strategy over ten years;

10. Note that over the last three years the government has undertaken a wide range of initiatives to improve the supply and uptake of ICTs in New Zealand including the e-commerce and e-government strategies and Project Probe, and that New Zealand is already in the top half of the OECD in terms of ICT infrastructure and business uptake;

11. Note that a broad suite of mutually reinforcing policies is needed to create conditions conducive to realising the economic benefits from ICTs and other emerging technologies, and that this is consistent with the GIF.

12. Direct MED, in consultation with Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, State Services Commission, Treasury and New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, to report back to the Associate Minister of Information Technology by 30 March 2004 on policy options to achieve further productivity gains from ICTs.

13. Invite the Ministers for Information Technology, Social development, Education and State Services, in consultation with the Minister Responsible for the National Library, to report to the Cabinet Economic Development Committee by 30 November 2003 on an over-arching digital strategy for New Zealand, taking into account existing government initiatives such as Project Probe (regional broadband extension), the e-commerce and e-government strategies and the work undertaken on digital divide issues.

14. Approve the following changes to appropriations to provide funding for improving the alignment and timeliness of ICT statistical information:

15. Approve the following changes to appropriations to fund the Futureintech initiative, a national ICT awareness programme to raise the awareness among students, teachers, and parents of ICT as a rewarding career:

16. Approve the following changes to appropriations to support CEO lifelong education:

17. Agree that the changes to appropriations for 2003/2004 above be included in the 2003/2004 Supplementary Estimates and that, in the interim, these expenses be met from Imprest Supply.

18. Note that the Minister for Information Technology indicates that consultation is not required with the government or other parties represented in Parliament.