techUK, the body that speaks for the UK IT industry, has made an interesting set of comments about yesterday’s major speech by Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn.
“Jeremy Corbyn is right that there are huge benefits to society that can come through automation,” writes its Deputy CEO, Antony Walker, from AI that can help improve diagnosis rates in the NHS to machine learning that can reduce time wasted on form filling in businesses.
But, he warns, if the UK wants to lead the way in harnessing this power, “We must be careful not to undermine the investment in digital technologies that will drive productivity and economic growth.”
All political parties should be thinking about how we handle the challenges to come from accelerated automation, tech UK adds, but claims “it is too soon” to be making “assumptions” about its impact on either jobs or the tax base.
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Care needs to be taken not to put a tax on productivity growth that is so fundamental to raising living standards, adds Walker.
“The challenges posed by automation cannot be solved by a short-term fix[and] automation can and will lead to the creation of new jobs and industries,” he adds.
“What is important is that UK workers have the skills and education needed to take advantage of those opportunities [which is] why Labour is right to highlight the importance of improving investment in education and lifelong learning.
“This approach must take priority over-relying on taxation to slow the pace of change,” he concludes.
