Taking advantage of IT's costly legacy

In other cases, businesses are moving applications and infrastructure to the cloud. But they may not be able to turn off the legacy IT straight away. In the short term at least, IT costs may well increase. As importantly, the cost per user or per transaction on older systems can rise, sometimes markedly, as new processes move to newer infrastructure.

These mechanics, suggests Bamforth, could be driving the UK's above average spending on legacy IT. If so, it might not be a negative sign at all. Instead, UK IT leaders are investing in technology faster than their European peers.

This could put their businesses ahead of the curve, if the economic recovery continues. Sometimes you have to spend to save. But you always have to invest, in order go grow.

Stephen Pritchard is a contributing editor at IT Pro.