Digital Scotland
20 May 2010
Last week I attended a meeting called by Jim Mather, the Scottish Parliament's Minister for Enterprise, Energy and Tourism. It was described as a stakeholder meeting on Digital Britain and attended by business groups (IOD, Scottish Chambers of Commerce, Scottish Council Development and Industry), Economic Development Agencies (Scottish Enterprise, Highlands & Islands Enterprise), Local Authorities (COSLA), Consumer Bodies (CFS and CCP) and others. The Scottish Government sees this group as a Steering Group to help influence the Westminster Government, articulate the Scottish position to Digital Britain UK, and to help build a consensus of interest around the issues to be tackled. The group is keen to see a Digital Strategy for Scotland as a starting point for this.
There was a useful discussion around the group's priorities for Digital Britain, on the universal broadband commitment and next-generation broadband. The civil servants will draft an initial position paper that is to be circulated for further discussion. The Communications Consumer Panel will continue to engage with this initiative and encourage the Scottish Government to examine the important issues raised in Digital Britain through the eyes of Scottish consumers and small businesses.