Upgrade IT to spice up economic system, Labour instructed

The Government could unlock billions in economic growth by helping small companies to upgrade their technology and IT systems, according to Sage Group.

Tax breaks are offered to companies for investments in factories and equipment.

But these do not extend to spending on crucial areas such as new software.

Sage, which is one of the biggest accountancy software providers, is calling for tax breaks to be extended to investments in technology.

The company warned the UK is particularly at risk of ‘missing out’ on using innovative artificial intelligence to improve their businesses.

Innovation: Sage is calling for tax breaks to be extended to investments in technology

Writing for The Mail on Sunday, Aaron Harris, Sage’s chief technology officer, said this would ‘hamper growth, competitiveness and ultimately the UK’s ability to become a science and technology superpower’.

Sage’s research found that over the next three years the accountancy sector alone could contribute an additional £2billion to GDP and create 19,000 new jobs if it adopted AI.

Harris said the Government ‘should give businesses greater confidence to invest in future growth.’