Government hints at more cash for IT

By PETER GRIFFIN

The Government is hinting at a sizeable allocation of technology funding in next year's Budget as it tries to bring its "digital strategy" to life.

Associate IT Minister David Cunliffe has been travelling the country "workshopping" his draft digital strategy with industry and community groups and has received good feedback.

Finance for various digital strategy initiatives will come under the Budget's growth and innovation category.

About $40 million has already been set aside to help in building the Advanced Network for Research and Education, a high-speed network linking 127 universities, polytechnics and Crown research institutes and designed to allow researchers to collaborate on projects.

Cunliffe said the project would eventually cost up to $130 million.

Rather than build an entirely new network, telcos such as Telecom and TelstraClear are expected to provide network access.

"We're in discussions with telcos about collaborating on a contestable model," said Cunliffe, who spoke about the strategy last week in Henderson, where he was launching the Waitakere City Council's information portal, www.waitakereonline.co.nz.

He would not say which areas of the strategy would receive the most money in the Budget.

But the strategy document points to a series of Government-funded projects to raise awareness and use of broadband and online applications.

By 2006, the Government will finance delivery of broadband to all public libraries and Citizens Advice Bureaus as part of Project Probe.

And by 2008, 95 per cent of all health and disability facilities will have access to a minimum 10Mbps (megabit per second) broadband link.

Cunliffe said he had received good feedback on his discussion paper on spam legislation.

He had the support of two telcos and, importantly, the Direct Marketing Association.

He expects Parliament to examine the legislation by the end of the year.