Editing Home Computer Initiative (section)

==Discontinuation==
On 23 March 2006, in his [[UK Budget]], Chancellor [[Gordon Brown]] announced the removal of HCI tax exemption for employer-loaned computers. {{As of|2006|April|6}} the HCI program was discontinued.<ref name=hmrc-2006/><ref name="2006 Budget" /> The move was made without any consultation with the employers or employees' bodies, a stark contrast to the extensive consultation that preceded its creation.

The Treasury of the [[United Kingdom]] made initial claims that the scheme's consumers were being dominated by higher-rate taxpayers. However, research by the HCI Alliance found that 75% of employees who purchased personal computers through the HCI were basic or starting rate taxpayers and 50% were "[[Blue-collar worker|blue collar]]" workers.<ref name="2006 Budget" /> The HCI Alliance, created in 2003, was a group of industry leaders who worked together with the UK Government. Their aim was to increase access to personal computing in the UK.

Another reason for the HCI being cancelled was that computers had become relatively more affordable. Most people in the workplace had access to computers and therefore, the purpose of the scheme had been achieved.<ref name=BBC>{{cite news|last=Duffy|first=Jonathan|title=Pulling the plug|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/4851090.stm|work=BBC News Magazine|date=28 March 2006 |publisher=BBC|access-date=7 February 2013}}</ref><ref name=accountingweb-20060322>{{cite news |url=https://www.accountingweb.co.uk/tech/tech-pulse/budget-2006-home-computer-initiative-ended-by-new-benefit-in-kind-rules-for-mobiles |title=Budget 2006: Home Computer Initiative ended by new benefit in kind rules for mobiles and PCs |last=Stokdyk |first=John |website=AccountingWEB |date=22 March 2006 |access-date=11 August 2021}}</ref>

In the days following the budget announcement, a significant lobbying campaign ensued, resulting in the treasury announcing that it would consider alternatives to HCI in its current format rather than disbanding it altogether. This led to the creation of the Educational Technology Allowance.