Election spotlights Victoria's ICT policy

Beverley Head
Wednesday, 03 November 2010 19:18

IT Policy - Government Tech Policy

With Victoria's election campaign in full swing, the ICT policies of both the State Government and Opposition are in the spotlight. While technology can't expect the starring role it achieved in the Federal election, courtesy of the National Broadband Network, ICT won't be just a bit player in the State campaign.

The Victorian Government ICT Action Plan, which was released last month, sent a strong signal to technology companies and industry in general that the State is serious about the sector.  While the opposition has yet to announce its ICT policies, shadow minister for ICT Gordon Rich-Phillips told iTWire that a series of announcements relating to ICT would be made over the next three and a half weeks of the campaign.

The Government's Action Plan claims that in 2010 the Victorian ICT sector employed 87,000 people and generated annual revenues of around $27 billion. It also claimed Victorian ICT exports amounted to over $1.5 billion a year.

Across all industry sectors, there are 131,500 ICT employees in the state - representing 4.7 per cent of Victoria's overall employment - and 27 per cent of ICT employees across the nation. Highlighting the ongoing importance of technology to all areas of the economy, Victoria's Action plan references Federal Government research that suggests ICT will be the main technological driver of productivity growth for another decade.

Victoria also lays claim to the largest proportion of ICT students, boasting 35 per cent of the nation's ICT undergraduate population and 40 per cent of the post graduate population.

In his introduction to the Action Plan the current treasurer and minister for ICT John Lenders makes the somewhat moot claim that 'Victoria is Australia's technology hub.' While Sydney with its slew of regional HQs might argue the toss, there is no doubt that Victoria is the most articulate State in terms of how it wants to engage with the ICT sector, and why.

Ian Birks is the chief executive officer of the Australian Information Industry Association and told iTWire that; 'Compared to other states they are light years ahead. Victoria has been the leadership state in terms of their holistic approach. They are ahead in terms of the understanding of and support for the ICT industry.'

While ICT is unlikely to be the same sort of sleeper issue in the Victorian election that it proved to be in the Federal election, courtesy of the National Broadband Network, it will have a role to play in terms of contribution to the 'economic development, research and development and growth of industry,' according to Mr Birks.

'The current government will push their credentials quite hard,' he predicted.

'Victoria quite a while ago identified this as a priority and developed a plan to respond to that. This gives a sense of consistent success.