But government must consult carefully with industry, says trade body

Small and medium size vendors will have greater access to public sector IT contracts as the government tries to diversify its suppliers.

In the budget yesterday chancellor Alistair Darling announced that 30 per cent of public sector contracts will be awarded to small and medium0sized enterprises (SMEs) within the next five years.

In the technology sector, SME access to public contracts has been seriously lacking, particularly in the NHS National Programme for IT, according to a spokesman for IT trade body Intellect.

"Gordon Brown's Business Advisory Council, created last year, contained just one technology company, when our sector represents at least 10 per cent of GDP, " he said.

Intellect hopes the sector will be well represented on a government committee that will look at improving SME access.

It is equally crucial that the government consults carefully with industry over other plans announced for road charging and smart meter schemes in the future, said Intellect.

"A simple, but effective mechanism for government-industry consultation already exists and it would be foolhardy not to use it," said the spokesman.