Policy Update: The Immigration White Paper

During the Covid-19 pandemic, government business policy was constantly and rapidly changing. From not knowing what support was on offer, to uncertainty about what various rules actually meant, even the most clued-in entrepreneurs told us they were struggling to keep up. For that reason, we launched our Policy Updates newsletter – which aimed to provide information to entrepreneurs about what the latest developments coming out of Whitehall meant for them.

While the pandemic is now thankfully a distant memory, we think there’s still value in formally communicating to our network about what’s going on in the policy world – and to that end, we’re firing up our Policy Updates once again. We’ll only send these when we think there is a timely, relevant update that impacts a majority of entrepreneurs in our network. Alongside the team at The Entrepreneurs Network, we will work with trusted experts – lawyers, accountants, academics, economists, consultants – on these updates. If you’re an expert and would like to be considered for inclusion, please drop us an email.

Today’s Policy Update is about the changes proposed by the Immigration White Paper, which was unveiled last week. We know that many startups critically rely on international talent – from the staff they employ, to the people who found them, and the investors who back them. We’ve partnered with the law firm Kingsley Napley on this one – find out more about them at the bottom of the Policy Update.

Questions Time

First the good news. Right now, you can materially contribute to making the UK a better place to start and grow a business. The bad news is that it involves filling out this survey.

We get it. Nobody likes filling out surveys – least of all me. But this one really matters.

We want the insights of actual entrepreneurs – not simply sole traders or senior decision-makers in large firms, who already have their own ways of getting their views across. We pride ourselves on being the voice of entrepreneurs, so we’ve created a real opportunity for your voice to be heard by those in Westminster.

This isn’t something we wanted to do by halves – that’s why we’ve crafted it in partnership with the experts at Public First. We’ve tested it with real entrepreneurs and I promise it will only take you between six and ten minutes.

If enough of you respond, we’ll run it on a regular basis. Some of the questions in it will remain the same each time, allowing us to track trends on various issues, while others will focus on topical issues that might be dominating the conversation. Everyone on this newsletter will be able to feed into what we should ask.

As a bit of an inducement – not that you need it, of course – we’ll be inviting those who respond to a launch party for the results in the City of London next month at Wedlake Bell. Places for that will be on a first-come basis, so don’t delay – fill out the survey here.

Island of Stragglers

As you’ll know, one of the survey questions concerns visas and immigration. This was a last-minute decision in response to the Government’s Immigration White Paper, which was released on Monday.

It’s bad news for British businesses. Under the plans set out in the White Paper, fewer jobs will qualify for sponsorship as the skill threshold for Skilled Worker visas rises to degree level, with only some mid-level roles temporarily allowed under a new Shortage Occupation List.

At the same time, minimum salary requirements will increase, Graduate visas will be shortened to 18 months, and the Immigration Skills Charge will rise by 32% to £1,320 per year. English language requirements will be tougher, including for dependants. The path to Indefinite Leave to Remain will be extended to ten years for Skilled Worker visa holders, with some accelerated routes, and reportedly these changes could apply to current visa holders, subject to consultation.

As Nick Rollason, Head of Immigration at the law firm Kingsley Napley, explained in the Financial Times, the combination of higher fees, higher salary thresholds and a potential ten-year wait for settlement could push the total cost of sponsoring a skilled worker with a partner and two children as high as £67,000, if the employer bore the full cost.

If the ten-year wait is imposed widely, it would be disastrous for attracting and retaining talent here. If it applies to those who are already here, it would be immoral – and likely illegal, as was the case in 2009 when the government tried to do something like this with the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme (HSMP) visa.

A nod was given to the needs of entrepreneurs, with things like the Government looking into potentially doubling of the High Potential Individual (HPI) visa, which is exactly what we called for in Job Creators 2024. But as Bella Rhodes argues in City A.M., exceptional and entrepreneurial talent is just the tip of the iceberg. The risk isn’t so much becoming a nation of strangers, but becoming a nation of stragglers.

As you might expect, there are a lot of conversations happening about how to have an impact before some of this becomes law. If you’re keen to have your say – besides filling in the survey, which, of course, you’ve already done or shared – drop me a message so I can know to keep you updated.

Peer Review

As you may have spotted, on Monday we released a letter on the Data (Use and Access) Bill. Our request was a rather modest one. As I wrote for Forbes:

“The proposed amendments reveal a fundamental misunderstanding of AI development. They would impose crushing transparency obligations – like monthly reporting of comprehensive training data – that bear no relation to how modern AI systems are actually built.”

It was signed by the great and the good: Professor Lord Tarassenko (Oxehealth), Professor Alison Noble CBE (Intelligent Ultrasound), Sir John Michael Brady (Perspectum, Optellum, Naitive Technologies, ScreenPoint Medical, and Oxford Community Diagnostics Centre), Professor Niki Trigoni (Navenio), Professor Paul Newman (Oxa Autonomy), and many more besides. Lord Tarassenko went on to mention the letter in the House of Lords.

Drop me a message if you have views on this thorny but critical policy issue.

Lilacs Are New

This week also saw the release of the final report from The Lilac Review. I’ve been on its Steering Committee, so it’s wonderful to see this come to fruition. The Review sees the launch of the LILAC Centre for Disabled Entrepreneurship, the UK’s first flagship business incubator and research centre dedicated to advancing the success of disabled entrepreneurs.

Three Big Ideas #33

Three Big Ideas is our weekly roundup of ideas (and our takes on them) in entrepreneurship, innovation, science and technology, handpicked by the team.

In this week, Eamonn Ives brings news worth cheering about for pigs around the world, Jessie May Green looks at potential growing opportunities in using wild plants for medical purposes, and a guest contribution comes from Bright Blue’s Will Prescott on a smarter way approach to the minimal salary threshold immigrant workers need to clear.

Open letter: Data (Use and Access) Bill

Today, we published an open letter to the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, Peter Kyle, asking him to urge Members of Parliament and Peers to reject amendments to the Data (Use and Access) Bill that threaten to undermine the Government’s careful and consultative approach to legislating on copyright and AI development. Below is the text of the letter and the full list of its signatories, who consist of leading AI founders, investors and academics. Anyone wanting to also sign the letter can do so here.

The letter and signatories in full

Dear Secretary of State,

Artificial Intelligence (AI) presents a generational opportunity to grow the economy,  cement the UK’s strategic advantage in science and technology and reshape the delivery of public services for the better. British-based companies, researchers and institutions are already creating and using AI tools to make scientific breakthroughs, build businesses, improve health outcomes, enhance creativity and make people’s lives easier. 

Since coming to power, this Government has taken decisive actions to ensure Britain can lead the world in the development of new AI technologies. The publication of the AI Opportunities Action Plan sets out the laudable ambition for the UK to be an “AI maker, not an AI taker,” and provides a solid blueprint for a thriving ecosystem of AI developers and users.

We welcome the Government’s intention to follow the consultation process and to consider the impact of any proposals before developing legislative solutions. Unfortunately, amendments to the Data (Use and Access) Bill proposed in the Lords threaten to undermine that process. 

Tabled before the Government had an opportunity to review submissions to the consultation intended to help develop viable proposals for copyright reform, these amendments pose a serious threat to the UK’s potential to lead in AI. We appreciate that some Parliamentarians feel strongly about these issues, but hurried decision making of this kind will not deliver a sustainable outcome for British businesses seeking to develop and deploy innovative new AI services.  

The debate around AI and copyright is complex. Navigating that complexity is not helped by legislation that sidelines the considered perspectives of those who are directly driving innovation in Britain’s AI ecosystem.

As founders of and investors in British companies that are leading the charge to keep Britain at the forefront of the global AI industry, we ask that you urge Members of Parliament and Peers to reject these amendments and instead explore workable proposals that stand up to scrutiny.

Yours sincerely,

Professor Lord Tarassenko – Founder and Director, Oxehealth 

Professor Alison Noble CBE – Founder, Intelligent Ultrasound

Sir John Michael Brady – Founder, Perspectum; Founder, Optellum; Director, Naitive Technologies; Founder, ScreenPoint Medical; CEO, Oxford Community Diagnostics Centre

Professor Niki Trigoni – Founder and Chief Science Officer, Navenio

Professor Paul Newman – Founder, CTO and President, Oxa Autonomy 

Mark Girolami – Sir Kirby Laing Professor of Civil Engineering, University of Cambridge

Rodolfo Rosini – Co-Founder, Vaire Computing

Stephen Roberts – Co-Founder, Mind Foundry

Michael A. Osborne – Co-Founder, Mind Foundry

Professor Philip Torr – Co-Founder, Director and Chief Technologist, Aistetic

William Briggs – Founder and CEO, Naitive Technologies

Sarah Drinkwater – Solo GP, Common Magic

Jonathan Gilmore – Founder and CEO, DeepFlow

Irina Pafomova – Co-Founder, Zestic AI

Andres Guadamuz – Reader in Intellectual Property Law, University of Sussex

John Spindler – Founder, Twin Path Ventures 

Michael Slade –Founder, Retainit

Sam Bose – Founder and CEO, IntelliSense.io 

Oliver Cameron – Co-Founder and CEO, Odyssey

Jeff Hawke – Co-Founder and CTO, Odyssey

Alasdair Thong – Head of Sovereign Innovation, Alloy Therapeutics

Trade Wins

Typical. You wait months for a trade deal, and then two come along at once. But these are very different beasts. First, India; one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing economies, with a huge and youthful population. Here, a trade deal provides British entrepreneurs with easier access to a vast and expanding consumer base.

It should be acknowledged that this has been in the making since January 2022, but hats off to the Government for getting it over the line. As I said to Sifted:

“Given the strength of both countries in technology and services, opportunities will open up for British firms to offer fintech, edtech, and professional services in India without requiring a physical presence.

“Critically, UK entrepreneurs will benefit from being among the first foreign entrants in newly-liberalised Indian sectors, giving them an edge over competitors in countries without a deal.”

Having visited many of India’s big cities, I’m more bullish than most. A trip to Gurgaon sticks in my mind. It’s India's 56th largest city in terms of population, eighth largest in terms of wealth, and the country’s second-largest information technology hub. I met countless razor-sharp, hugely ambitious young people building incredible things. It goes without saying that India, like all countries, has challenges to overcome, but it also has a huge amount of potential – potential that we could tap into in more ways than just trade.

After all, everyone knows that many of Silicon Valley’s – and by extension the world’s – biggest companies are run by people hailing from the most populous democracy on Earth. The UK has also benefited hugely from Indian-born founders, as our Job Creators reports have shown.

Those reports also show that many of the UK’s most successful founders (as judged by company valuation) are foreign-born and come to the UK to study before starting and growing their businesses here. If the forthcoming Immigration White Paper limits the ability of people to stay here after graduation (as has been rumoured), the impact on the UK will be profoundly damaging to entrepreneurship. It would mean vast swathes of future high-potential firms won’t be built in the UK (it will also slam universities and local economies across Britain).

The other trade deal was, of course, with the US. While it’s understandable that the UK Government signed the deal, I think the more sober assessments of Britain’s broadsheets are about right, with Alan Beattie writing that “the pact is closer to a protection payment to a mob boss than a liberalising agreement between sovereign countries.”

For our part, as per our Towards A More Special Relationship report, in partnership with Rigby Group, we continue to make the case for small steps towards a better agreement. British businesses are certainly optimistic, expecting tariffs to be withdrawn within six months, according to polling by Boston Consulting Group.

Uncanny Valleys

Our Head of Science and Technology Anastasia Bektimirova sat down with Graeme Reid, Professor of Science and Research Policy at UCL, to discuss the forces reshaping Britain’s innovation landscape since the 1980s. Having advised governments on science policy over the years, Graeme shared thoughts on how academia-industry-government relationships have shifted over the decades.

“The valley of death weakness has been diagnosed many times. We know the problem and don’t need another review to confirm it. What we need now is a solution.”

This blunt assessment cuts to the heart of a peculiar affliction: diagnosing problems in our innovation ecosystem without implementing lasting solutions.

For example, “one of the problems is the turbulence in regional funding,” he explains, describing how promising initiatives are repeatedly replaced before they can demonstrate effectiveness.

“Just as it begins to show promise – five or seven years later – it’s replaced by something similar but with slightly different terms or people, essentially starting over from scratch.”

This pattern appears across the innovation landscape, from the challenges of science-based companies scaling up to academic-policy engagement. Read the full interview here.

Butler Did It

I’m delighted to welcome Buzzacott as our latest Corporate Partner and Iain Butler, their Head of Innovation Incentives, as our latest Adviser.

Iain specialises in R&D Tax Credits, but has spent ten years as an R&D team manager and engineer himself in the space, semiconductor, and media industries, so truly understands the challenges these teams face.

As he says:

“For the UK to truly thrive, it must bolster the R&D and innovation efforts of ambitious entrepreneurs and SMEs. We are committed to collaborating with The Entrepreneurs Network to ensure that SME innovation remains a focal point in Westminster’s discussions.”

We’ll be hosting a roundtable discussion with Buzzacott on R&D Tax Credits as part of our partnership. If the last few conversations I’ve had with entrepreneurs is anything to go by, I know this will be oversubscribed.

If you’re keen to discuss becoming an Adviser or Corporate Partner, you can find out more here, and book a time to speak with me here.

Tectonic Shifts

In our latest interview, Anastasia Bektimirova spoke to Graeme Read, Professor of Science and Research Policy at University College London. They discussed how the relationships between academia, business and government have changed in the last several decades and how these have impacted science and technology innovation in Britain.

Three Big Ideas #32

Three Big Ideas is our weekly roundup of ideas (and our takes on them) in entrepreneurship, innovation, science and technology, handpicked by the team.

In this week, Eamonn Ives explains why de minimis exemptions on imports are a good thing, Philip Salter argues the case against restricting visas for international students, and Anastasia Bektimirova dives into how the design of AI microsites influences our perception of their messages.

Due Process

Timing is everything in politics: when to call that election, when to U-turn on an unpopular policy, and when the moment’s right to spend more time with the family. It also matters to those trying to influence politics. You can have the best ideas in the world – or the worst – but you need to wait for a window of opportunity. When it comes to AI and copyright, that moment is now.

We’ve been talking about this for a fair while, and back in January last year we set out the challenges in our ‘Ronseal’ paper: Can the UK become competitive on text-and-data mining for AI? While we didn’t take an exact line on the solution, we wanted to draw attention to the fact that other countries were moving faster than the United Kingdom in securing the legal foundations for training AI models, with Japan, Singapore and the European Union each providing competitive models for the UK to consider.

Over recent months, this issue has become front-page news thanks to artists like Elton John, Paul McCartney and Dua Lipa adding their celebrated voices to the debate. Sadly, I don’t think this thorny policy is going to be solved by even the genius behind Yesterday – anyone who has a simple solution to what’s going on is either deluding themselves or lying to you.

As a new survey of 500 UK-based AI developers and investors revealed this week, there is a near-unanimous reliance on text and data mining (TDM) – the process of using automated techniques to train AI models. Of those surveyed, 99% said TDM is essential, while 76% said the absence of a copyright exemption for TDM – like that in the US, EU, or Japan – would make the UK less attractive for AI investment

For our part, we have a modest recommendation: listen to experts, including entrepreneurs. This is actually the Government line, as Ministers and officials pore over the 11,000 responses to a consultation they launched on copyright and AI in December 2024.

However, this process could all be derailed. On the back of the Data (Use and Access) Bill – a separate piece of legislation which addresses a broad range of priorities related to data – Peers have proposed adding changes to that Bill regarding how UK copyright law is applied to AI services.

Among other things, it would require developers to disclose comprehensive information regarding all text and data used in the pre-training, training and fine-tuning of general purpose AI on a monthly basis.

These proposals have been introduced outside the process of consultation that was launched precisely to inform the Government’s approach on copyright and AI. It’s a divisive issue, but surely we can all agree that any proposals with significant implications for businesses and innovation should be considered through proper channels. What’s the point of asking industry for their views if they are just going to be ignored?

Now is the time to act. It may seem perverse to dynamic founders who can pivot on a sixpence, but Westminster is a place where inertia too often rules the roost. Once the legislative train leaves the station, it can become impossible to switch tracks – even when many on board know their going the wrong way.

If you’re a founder, investor or just an interested party, drop me an email to find out how you could get involved.

Take a Punt

On Wednesday, we are hosting our second Young Entrepreneurs Forum Meetup in Cambridge. If you are a young founder – or wannabe founder – in or around the area, it would be great to see you there. (If you know of any young founders who you think should know, either pass this on or tag them in this LinkedIn post, which also helps get the word out either wider.)

The Young Entrepreneurs Forum is an international project from The Entrepreneurs Network. It aims to connect and empower young entrepreneurs who are building incredible things across the world, and to influence governments to create better enabling environments for young entrepreneurs.

Three Big Ideas #31

Three Big Ideas is our weekly roundup of ideas (and our takes on them) in entrepreneurship, innovation, science and technology, handpicked by the team.

In this week, Eamonn Ives argues the case for post-legislative scrutiny being written into laws from their conception, Philip Salter looks into how pets could be a gateway for approving more treatments for their human owners, and Jessie May Green writes about a new climate data initiative that promises to be a ‘planetary MRI’.

Group Think

We’re so back. Or more accurately, the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Entrepreneurship is, of which we’re the Secretariat. We’ve got big plans for the year ahead, but are always open to new ideas, and very open to working in collaboration with others – more on this later.

We’ve been Secretariat of the APPG for Entrepreneurship since 2018, but APPGs have a far longer history, dating back, at least in a more formal structure, to 1937 when two backbench Members of Parliament set up an all-party American committee to extend the knowledge of the United States within the British Parliament and elsewhere. The British-American Parliamentary Group (BAPG) is still around and certainly has its work cut out!

APPGs offer MPs and Peers a way to collaborate outside the rigid structures of party whips. Over time, the number of APPGs boomed, with everything from Advertising to Zoos represented. As the number grew, so did the need for stricter regulation. As a consequence, there are now fewer APPGs overall, and fewer focused on those not-so-inconsequential topics of business and wealth creation. That’s why we think the APPG we run is one of the most important.

So how can you get involved? First, sign up for the APPG’s monthly newsletter. This will give you an insider’s view of what’s going on and coming up in Parliament that is relevant to entrepreneurs and those who support them. Second, let us know if you want to host an Officer or Member of the APPG for an event. And finally, we are looking for between three and five keystone sponsors to support the work of the APPG, so just let me know if this is something you’d be interested in.

We’re very excited about the APPG. Our Officers include Tris Osborne MP (Labour), Victoria Collins MP (Liberal Democrat), Lord Leigh of Hurley (Conservative) and Lord Bilimoria of Chelsea (Crossbench) – all representing different political traditions, but all united in their determination to do their bit in making the UK the best place in the world to start and grow a business.

We also have some exceptional Members, including serial entrepreneur Angus MacDonald MP, who founded eFinancialCareers among many other businesses, the Rt Hon the Baroness Neville-Jones DCMG (to give her full title), who sits on the Lords Science and Technology Committee, and rising star Callum Anderson MP who is the Parliamentary Private Secretary to Peter Kyle. The list goes on.

Truro to Tallinn

As we have argued ever since Britain voted to leave the European Union, it’s in each side’s interest to negotiate a UK-EU youth mobility scheme, replicating those we have with several other nations already. That’s why we welcome news that no fewer than 62 MPs have signed a letter calling for time-limited visas for 18- to 30-year-olds from Europe to travel and work freely in Britain, and vice versa. Briefings suggest that the Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, is warming up the idea, albeit only if we insist on a ‘one-in, one-out’ approach to limit its contribution to net migration figures.

While I would like to see open travel, given the political constraints around immigration I’ve made this exact pragmatic case – after all, limited liberalisation is better than none at all. As regular readers may remember, I wrote:

“[J]ust 23,000 people came to the UK on Youth Mobility Visas in 2023, with as many young Brits going the other way (particularly to Australia). Also, most of these schemes are capped – Uruguay at 500 people, Canada at 8,000, and Australia at 45,000. We could negotiate for a capped EU Youth Mobility Visa scheme to offset the political risk associated with unexpectedly large numbers.”

Our country needs young blood. As our Research Director, Eamonn Ives, argued here last year:

“Like many countries, Britain’s population is steadily ageing. In 2022, around a fifth of the population were aged 65 years or older. Fifty years prior, the figure stood at 13%. Projections from the Office for National Statistics suggest that, 50 years hence, 27% of the population will be.

“While there are reasons to celebrate this trend – people living healthier, longer lives is surely a good thing – there’s no getting away from the fact that it also creates problems in need of solutions. A population which skews old means those of working age have to toil all the harder to cover the costs of pensions and other benefits.

“Allowing young, aspirational individuals to come into the country and contribute towards the economy is a surefire way to address this demographic dilemma. And if our analysis is anything to go by, it proves that immigrants play an outsized role right where it matters most – founding the fast-growing and innovative businesses that haul an economy into the future.”

On the subject of immigration, we’re on the lookout for a sponsor for Job Creators 2025. If you want to back one of our most impactful reports, get in touch.

Purposeful Profit

Britain’s Enterprise Management Incentive (EMI) is a tax-advantaged way to reward employees and boost the growth of smaller companies. But while the economy has changed since it was first introduced, EMI hasn’t always kept up – with some now saying that it’s no longer fit for purpose.

We’re keen to test ideas for how it could be improved to ensure it is delivering for the companies it’s trying to support. If you have thoughts on EMI – either as a business owner who has offered it, an employee who’s made use of it, or other outside expertise – let us know and we’ll be in touch.

Three Big Ideas #30

Three Big Ideas is our weekly roundup of ideas (and our takes on them) in entrepreneurship, innovation, science and technology, handpicked by the team.

In this week, Eamonn Ives urges the Chancellor to call ‘cut!’ on tenuous taxbreaks for film studios, Philip Salter discusses the parallels between 17th Century brewing and our modern economy today, and Anastasia Bektimirova implores us to think of growth as a mode of transport, not a destination.

Guarding Golden Geese

Few policy issues hit as hard as tax. While entrepreneurs care about a lot – from access to talent and finance, to regulation and infrastructure, to making British culture more entrepreneurial – it’s only when changes to taxes are mooted that my inbox starts overflowing.

This is to be expected. While some think the art of taxation consists of plucking the goose so as to get the most feathers with the least hissing, entrepreneurs know full well that the real damage isn’t the hissing, but stopping them from creating the wealth that pays for everything else.

This week, the Tony Blair Institute released A Pro-Growth Roadmap for Business-Tax Reform. One recommendation I’m particularly keen on is allowing businesses to deduct the full cost of all plant and machinery expenditure (including on vehicles and, crucially for a lot of Britain’s startups, intangibles) and introducing ‘neutral’ cost recovery for buildings so that allowances keep pace with inflation and the time value of money.

All the way back in June 2018, my former colleague Sam Dumitriu wrote a report for the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Entrepreneurship making one of the first cases for full expensing in the UK. For those with an interest in how policy change really happens, read this article from The Economist.

Another recommendation I’m pleased to see is the idea to swap the existing business rates system for a commercial‑landowner tax that only taxes unimproved land value, shifting formal liability to landlords and removing penalties on developing or upgrading property.

Our Adviser Andrew Dixon OBE deserves full credit for this policy idea, which the TBI report gives by pointing people towards his brilliant Taxing Land, Not Investment report. As I wrote at the time: “Business rates are a tax on investment, adding to Britain’s productivity woes. Introducing a Commercial Landowner Levy would remove a key disincentive to investment and reduce administration costs for thousands of business owners. This is exactly the sort of policy entrepreneurs need to thrive.”

But it’s not all roses. The TBI report also calls for Business Asset Disposal Relief (BADR), formerly Entrepreneurs’ Relief, to be scrapped. As entrepreneurs know only too well – particularly the thousands who have moved or are moving their business abroad – the relief has already been slashed, with the maximum amount of gains that are subject to the lower rate reduced from £10 million to £1 million in 2020, and the last Budget increased the tax rate on disposals from 10% to 18%.

While the report is right to point to the lack of evidence across the whole business population, we know from speaking to many of the world’s most successful founders that it has acted as a massive incentive for them to start and keep their businesses in Britain.

We’re keen to build the evidence base to prove this beyond doubt, and make the case that the Treasury should retarget the relief at founders who are scaling businesses to incentivise the world’s best entrepreneurs to start, grow and sell multiple businesses in Britain.

When the geese do need to hiss, we’re the megaphone (as we were when rumours swirled that Capital Gains Tax was going to be hiked significantly). All of which is to say, let me know if you think BADR is worth hissing about.

Protecting the Ecosystem

We’re launching a new meetup group for entrepreneurship ecosystem builders. As Natalia Loza, who is partnering with us on this, explains:

This gathering is for those working behind the scenes to make entrepreneurship thrive. Whether you’re leading or sponsoring an accelerator, venture builder, corporate innovation team, policymaking body, university innovation office, innovation agency, or any other venture support organisation – your work is vital in helping founders and businesses launch, grow, and succeed.

What’s in it for you?

• Meaningful connections with like-minded ecosystem builders

• Fresh insights from others navigating similar challenges and opportunities

• And yes – coffee, croissants, and great conversation in good company

Say WhatsApp?

After a bit of experimenting, phase one of our WhatsApp Community is working. Anyone can join our Community – just tap here. While you can’t post yet, you can respond to our announcements, which we try to keep to a couple per week.

We’ve also got our Adviser group up and running (request to join here) and the APPG for Entrepreneurship Advisory Board group (request to join here).

Next week, we’ll roll out our Supporters group and we’ll also launch our Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Builders (see above). Phase two will be opening up more groups through a comprehensive application form.

Three Big Ideas #29

Three Big Ideas is our weekly roundup of ideas (and our takes on them) in entrepreneurship, innovation, science and technology, handpicked by the team.

In this week, Eamonn Ives urges founders to heed Pablo Picasso, Philip Salter makes the case for unshackling more public data, and Jessie May Green delves into why carbon credit markets could be falling short of their true potential.

No Uncertain Terms

In this week’s issue of Perennial Gale, I explore how political uncertainty weighs on entrepreneurship, investment and innovation. Drawing on recent research and real-world examples – from the fallout of Brexit to the policy whiplash after Trump’s first term – I show how unpredictable policy environments can stall new business formation, shrink investor appetite and slow productivity growth. Even whispers of tax changes have recently prompted founders to rush exits ahead of possible reforms.

But it’s not all doom and gloom. There’s evidence that some firms respond to uncertainty by doubling down on R&D, treating turbulence as a strategic window to out-innovate competitors. While uncertainty depresses aggregate activity, the entrepreneurial instinct to adapt and push forward remains a vital counterforce. As we await the next Budget and possible further shifts in policy, the question isn’t whether uncertainty will persist – it’s how the most ambitious firms will navigate through it.

In addition, we want to hear from entrepreneurs. We’re responding to a government consultation on e-invoicing, and we’re looking into accelerators and incubators. Get in touch with Eamonn or Anastasia respectively to feed your views in.

Three Big Ideas #28

Three Big Ideas is our weekly roundup of ideas (and our takes on them) in entrepreneurship, innovation, science and technology, handpicked by the team.

In this week, Philip Salter takes stock of how to boost European scaleups, Eamonn Ives ponders a new way to think about GDP per capita, and Anastasia Bektimirova explains what she’s excited about as ARIA announces its second cohort of Programme Directors.

Anyone…?

Whatever mistakes you’ve made this week, take solace in the fact that you didn’t wipe $2.5 trillion of value off Wall Street and drive your country towards recession. And that’s ignoring the damage inflicted across the globe. No, that was Donald John Trump, the 47th President of the United States.

While on the face of it we got off relatively lightly, make no mistake: this is bad news for Britain’s entrepreneurs. While we ‘only’ got hit with 10% tariffs, our economy does not exist in isolation. When markets around the rest of the world stutter, so too will our own. These tariffs will destroy trading relationships for millions of individual firms, which may take years to adjust to – if at all. Positive-sum gains accrued from specialisation and exposure to international competition will evaporate.

As I’ve argued on these pages before, the government should be unstinting in its promotion of free trade around the world: “Free trade might be a little passé these days, but we shouldn’t forget the lessons of our forebears like Adam Smith who demolished the mercantilist worldview in the Wealth of Nations, and Richard Cobden, who tirelessly campaigned for free trade for the good of the poorest and to broker peace between nations.”

The methodology Trump’s team has used to impose tariffs is nothing short of madness. Despite claims to the contrary, they didn’t calculate tariff rates and non-tariff barriers. Instead, they just took the US trade deficit for each country and divided it by the country’s exports.

The tiny island of St Pierre et Miquelon got slammed with a 99% tariff because somebody bought $3.4 million worth of crustaceans in July 2024, but your deepest sympathies should go out to the entrepreneurs of Vietnam and Thailand and their populations, who will suffer deeply from these tariffs, both through direct exposure to US imports, but also indirectly via exports to the US through other countries.

There’s simply no escaping Econ 101. Trump needn’t have even pulled himself away from his TV addiction to learn this. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off does a good enough job of explaining why the Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act of 1930 – legislation that raised tariffs on imports in an attempt to protect American industries and generate more revenue for the government – worsened the Great Depression by stifling international trade rather than helping the economy recover. Anyone…? Anyone…?

Mark my words. Trump’s tariffs will fail. Perhaps we can take solace in The Economist’s Mike Bird’s insight that aggressive protectionism is often followed by a long backlash: “The Corn Laws, Smoot-Hawley, and interwar European trade restrictions sparked the resurgence of free-trade liberalism in the generations that followed them.”

Jolly Good Fellows

Defeating Trump’s mercantilism and equivalents in the UK will require a lot of people to put up a strong fight. To that end, it’s great to see our good friends at UK Day One expanding to create the much-needed Centre for British Progress. I’m delighted that Anastasia Bektimirova, our Head of Science and Technology, has joined as one of their Fellows. I strongly recommend reading their long read Rediscovering British Progress.

Party Time

The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Entrepreneurship will soon be back, with Tris Osborne MP (Labour), Victoria Collins MP (Liberal Democrats), Lord Leigh of Hurley (Conservative) and Lord Bilimoria of Chelsea (Crossbench). As the Secretariat we’ve got big plans, so how can you get involved?

First, if you’re an MP or Peer, you can still become a Member. Get in touch with our APPG Coordinator, Jessie, to let her know.

Second, if you or your company supports entrepreneurs you may want to support the APPG. We are looking for up to four supporters for 2025/26. Drop me an email so I can send through more information.

Third, if you represent entrepreneurs, you may be able to join our Advisory Board. We catch up every month to discuss policy issues, research and events relating to all things entrepreneurship. Drop Eamonn Ives an email to find out more.

Fresh Thinking

Another week, another new Adviser. This week, I’m pleased to announce that James Callander, Managing Director of Freshminds is joining our growing ranks. As he says:

“I have always been super enthusiastic about the world of business and entrepreneurs – while it can be hugely risky and not for everyone, I think that running your own company is a wonderful privilege and something we (as a society) should encourage as an engine of job and wealth creation.”

If you’re keen to join James as an Adviser, get in touch.

Data with Destiny

Over in the Analysis page of our Substack, our Head of Science and Technology Anastasia Bektimirova writes about her latest report, Governing in the Age of AI: Building Britain’s National Data Library, and how to drive innovation and growth through a new National Data Library.

Three Big Ideas #27

Three Big Ideas is our weekly roundup of ideas (and our takes on them) in entrepreneurship, innovation, science and technology, handpicked by the team.

In this week, Eamonn Ives draws attention to ways to reform the Office for Budget Responsibility in a pro-growth fashion, Anastasia Bektimirova asks whether tokenisation of the economy may require us to rethink institutions, and Jessie May Green looks at how smart siting could boost the rollout of renewable power.

Real Dynamo

For too long, there has been a chasm between rhetoric and reality – between the way that too many politicians talk and think about growth, and the realities of productivity. It’s time to bridge this gap. It’s time to focus on business dynamism.

To butcher a Paul Krugman quote, business dynamism isn’t everything, but, in the long run, it is almost everything. As the ERC’s State of Small Business Britain Report 2024, which was released this week, clearly states: “The link between business dynamism and productivity growth at the national level is an empirically established fact.”

Business dynamism is the pace at which businesses start up, expand, shrink, or close down. It matters because high dynamism usually goes hand-in-hand with greater innovation, stronger productivity growth, and more job opportunities. When new businesses emerge, and existing firms grow or adapt quickly, it tends to promote competition, fresh ideas, and economic vitality. Conversely, if dynamism wanes – reflected in fewer startups and lower rates of growth – innovation can slow, job creation can stall, and overall economic progress may suffer.

In the UK, Professor Mark Hart has been leading this research for many years. He finds that, on average, about a quarter of UK jobs are either created or destroyed each year. However, the overall job reallocation rate has declined over time, suggesting lower levels of business dynamism. Notably, only 3-5% of existing jobs are created by newly launched businesses (startups), and that proportion has been falling in recent years.

One of the implications for policymakers is the need to think about policies to support wider categories of businesses – whether that’s startups reaching £1 million turnover within three years; established firms growing from £1-2 million turnover to over £3 million; or so-called “productivity heroes” that are increasing revenue per employee while also creating new jobs.

There are debates to be had about how to slice and dice the categories. And there are full-on arguments to be had about the policies needed to support them – where they overlap and where they differ. But there can be no arguing at all about the importance of business dynamism.

We’re planning to do more on this issue. Drop me an email if you’re keen to be involved.

Spring Lose

In case you missed it, we gave our reaction to the Chancellor’s Spring Statement. We covered everything from revised growth forecasts, additional investment pledged for defence capabilities, Making Tax Digital and the consultation on R&D tax relief.

As many of you will know only too well, R&D tax relief is an ongoing debacle. It was a major point of contention at a roundtable we held the day after. In fact, our Research Director Eamonn Ives wants to hear from you if you’ve been stung by recent changes to R&D tax credits.

Two other ongoing bones of contention also cropped up – the impending hike to Employer’s National Insurance Contributions, and forthcoming regulations contained in the Employment Rights Bill.

Group Focus

We are collaborating with Enterprise Nation to deliver a joint response to the Government’s call for evidence on e-invoicing, with a view to understanding how to further promote its use among Britain’s small businesses. We’re looking for views from all sides. If you want to have your say, join our focus group from 12pm to 1pm on 9 April to share your thoughts.

Esprit de Cork

The latest Adviser to join our growing ranks is Julian Cork, COO and Board Member of Landbay, a leading UK prime buy-to-let mortgage lender which he has helped scale the platform to a loan book of over £3.3 billion. As he says:

“Entrepreneurship matters. It is one of the most powerful engines of innovation, job creation, and societal progress. Founders and startups don’t just build businesses, they solve real-world problems, challenge conventions, and drive economic dynamism. For the UK to remain globally competitive, it must continue to be a place where entrepreneurs can thrive – where ambition is supported, innovation is celebrated, and barriers to growth are removed.”

We couldn’t agree more. Find out how you can join Julian as our next Adviser here.

Real Dynamo

In this week’s issue of Perennial Gale, I argue that if we’re serious about fixing Britain’s sluggish productivity, we need to stop speaking in vague platitudes about growth and start focusing on business dynamism. As the latest State of Small Business Britain Report makes clear, the link between dynamism and productivity is no longer up for debate. When businesses start, scale, adapt, or even exit at a healthy clip, the result is more innovation, more competition, and a more vibrant economy.

Yet Britain’s dynamism is faltering. Fewer startups are breaking through, and job churn – a key indicator of economic vitality – is declining. The challenge for policymakers is to support not just more startups, but a wider range of firms at different stages of growth. That means targeted policies for everything from high-growth early-stage businesses to mid-sized firms boosting productivity and creating new jobs. However we frame the debate, one thing is clear – business dynamism is not a nice-to-have, it’s the engine of progress.

In addition, we gave our reaction to the Chancellor’s Spring Statement, issued a call for entrepreneurs to speak their minds at our event on e-invoicing with Enterprise Nation, and said hello to Julian Cork as our latest new Adviser.