The office was a hum of activity on the Tuesday morning after Easter when the Prime Minister announced that there would be a snap general election on 8th June. That election has now been voted on in Parliament, and the motion has been carried by 522 votes to 13. These events bring an uncertainty to a world that is already relatively uncertain – with the global political and economic landscape perhaps more fractured than it has been in recent memory. Here we examine some of the consequences the election might have on the digital sector, and those looking for work in sectors requiring Microsoft Dynamics skills.

The big issue

The big issue of this election will be Brexit. The winning party will have full control over the sort of exit from the European Union the country has, and this will impact the digital sector. For example, for those in the sector to be economically secure, any free trade agreement will need to cover both goods AND services, as digital products are generally traded as the later. There’s a chance the EU will want to focus on goods, and services could get side-lined if the government aren’t careful. Another key concern is talent, 25% of which comes from EU territories. Closing boarders and establishing new visa systems will create a new barrier for those looking for careers in the UK tech sector, and this could slow growth – not just in that sector, but in the entire UK economy.

Automatic renewal

Finally, because of Brexit, and according to the Financial Times, it could be that over 250 digital-related contracts that were expected to expire might be automatically renewed, rather than expire and being handed back to UK workers. This is a big knock for the government’s digital and innovations agenda, which aims to get government departments to re-think their outsourcing deals – recommending them in the direction of either working inhouse, or outsourcing deals to smaller, more innovative cloud-based solutions. One of the largest examples of a contract that might need to be extended is HMRC’s Aspire contract which is responsible for the tax collector’s primary back-office systems. This contract is currently outsourced to Capgemini, Accenture and Fujitsu. With a cost of nearly £8 billion for the 10 years to March 2014, the contract has already been extended one, and is now at risk of being extended again.

Our opinion

As one of the top Dynamics recruitment specialists, we really care about what happens to the tech and digital sectors as it impacts our clients and job seekers equally. With the election just a few short weeks away, we won’t have long to wait to see whether the government will stick to its digital and innovations agenda, and to what extent Brexit has on the digital economy. With digital playing an increasing role in the wider economy, we would like to think that whatever government comes to fruition will protect the sector and act in its interest. For more insight on the Dynamics sector, have a look at our blog.