The information underclass: can Gordon Brown bring IT to the masses?

Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, revealed a seven-point plan to propel Britain to the forefront of global ecommerce development last month.

This plan included fiscal measures to encourage Web-based enterprise and education, and schemes to encourage wider access to IT across society.

"We cannot have a society divided between 'information haves' and 'information have-nots'; a society with a wired-up superclass and an information underclass," Brown said during his speech at the UK Internet Summit, hosted by the New Statesman magazine and advertising giant, WPP.

There is no doubt that the 'ecommerce revolution' must encompass every tier of society - but is Brown on the right track?

One of the specific measures he intends to introduce is a tax incentive scheme - first introduced in Sweden - in which employees will be given tax breaks on computers borrowed from their employers. Another measure is a PC leasing scheme, where people can cheaply rent a computer from a community centre much as they might borrow a book from a library.

Alistair Kelman, managing director, ILC Telepathic, welcomes the measures. Streaming funds to support access to hardware and software is clearly a logical step forward, he said, but it's only half the solution.

According to Kelman, the reason people do not use computers in the poorest communities is not because they physically aren't able to, but because they have no reason to. "People will only use computers when they actually affect them, for example in education, local council and other services.

"We've really got to address the issue of culture - the last thing we want is a repeat of a situation where Bill Gates donates a couple of £2,000 computers that are then stolen by local criminals," he added.

Perri 6, senior research fellow at the University of Strathclyde's department of government, agreed that equipment is not the only answer: content is key. "Most of the content on the Web is not relevant to the those that are currently excluded," he said.

He's right - most content on the Yahoo!s and AOLs of the Web world is targeted at a narrow band of UK citizens. Perri 6 suggested Brown might consider tax incentives and funding to encourage entrepreneurs to produce content for the whole spectrum of UK society.

As far as the technological infrastructure itself is concerned, there is one major obstacle to getting online: high call charges. Any policy to encourage wider access to the Net must include a crackdown on any anti-competitive behaviour in the telecoms market.

Brown did address this: "Government is reviewing every barrier to competition in the emerging ecommerce market. Old monopolies and cosy cartels have no place in this market."

BT has recently been chastised over its so-called 'special deals' on call charges for school Internet access - which, it turns out, are not that cheap after all. In fact, these schemes may prove more expensive than ISDN access.

It's going to take a lot of hardcore policy and work to tame this company which announced profits of £3.3bn in its latest financial results (see 'BT announces £3bn profits growth' http://www.silicon.com/a33963 ). Eric Salama, CEO of WPP.com, thinks this can be done. "I think the government is sincere about cracking the BT monopoly. We also have serious competition with the likes of NTL and other cable companies. Government wants to get prices down in the UK using competition."

Another issue that stops people going online is the complicated process of actually choosing and buying equipment. Even those people whose work includes the regular use of a computer, struggle to keep up with the latest upgrades and pricing schemes. Imagine how a page of PC World's catalogue looks to your average 60-year-old.

Perri 6 said: "The industry has a lot to answer for here. Most kit is completely unsuitable for those who are just starting out."

The Conservative Party's take on social exclusion in IT is that the government is doing too much, not too little. If in power the Tories would "leave it to businesses to encourage more people to use IT through their work with schools and other areas", according to a spokesman.

So the Conservative scenario would leave the likes of BT and other industry players to guide people gently into the world of IT - which isn't necessarily the most comforting of thoughts.

If Brown and the Labour government are to achieve wider social inclusion in the digital revolution, they must start thinking deeper and wider and go beyond simple funding schemes and tax regimes.

The measures Brown announced were a start, certainly, but not much more than that. A real strategy involves a complete rethink in terms of culture, education and content. And perhaps more importantly, it means taking the industry in hand - including the telecoms sector - which has so far run riot, leaving the market closed, charges high and a complete mystery to a large proportion of the population.