To coincide with the launch of our new paper Strong Foundations, we have an open letter in today’s Telegraph endorsing the report and pushing for more action to make it easier to build enough homes in the places where they are most needed.
You can read it below:
Britain’s start-ups are being held back by the high cost of housing and office space.
Talent is priced out of our most productive cities. Londoners spend nearly 40 per cent of their income on rent. And, after paying extra for talent because of higher housing costs, British businesses are punished again through some of the most expensive office rents in the world.
The United Kingdom has many strengths for entrepreneurs: world-class universities, London’s financial hub, and the highest venture-capital investment in Europe. But Berlin, Paris and Amsterdam become more inviting as housing continues to get more expensive in London, Oxford and Cambridge. Silicon Valley provides a cautionary tale, where insufficient housing has led to an exodus of founders and investors.
But there is cause for optimism. Simple tweaks to planning legislation could solve much of the problem. A new report from the Entrepreneurs Network sets out a range of reforms that could make millions of new homes available.
It is vital that the reforms are included in the upcoming levelling up bill. We urge Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, to consider seriously the pivotal role this bill could play.
List of signatories:
Matt Clifford
Entrepreneur First
Emma Jones
Enterprise Nation
Simon Woodroffe
YO! Company
Philip Salter
Founder' The Entrepreneurs Network
Dr Dylan Jones-Evans
Director, Enlli Associates
Andrew Dixon
Director ,ARC InterCapital Ltd
Jessica Mendoza
CEO, Monadd
Dr Cristiana Banila
Founder & CSO, Mitra Bio
John Hassard
Director EnviroMission Ltd
Cordelia Meacher
Managing Director, FieldHouse Associates
Lorraine Thomas
Founder, View From My Window
Anne-Laure Le Cunff
Founder, Ness Labs Ltd
Alex Hanson-Smith
Co-Founder & CTPO, inploi
Giovanna Forte
CEO, Forte Medical Limited
Maria Tanjala
CEO FilmChain
Marc Figueras
Director KeyNest
Simon Labahn
Co-Founder & CEO, Spotlight
Richard Mabey
CEO, Juro
Peter Francis
Co-Founder, FluidStack
Rose Tan
Founder, PlayThru
Lorna Armitage
Co-Founder & COO, CAPSLOCK
Erika Brodnock
CEO, Optimum Health
Maiko Schaffrath
Founder, Impact Hustlers
Sebastien Krier
Director, Dataphysix Ltd
Henry Whorwood
Head of Research & Consultancy, Beauhurst
Tommy Long
Co-Founder, JDLT
Paul C Cheshire
Professor of Economic Geography, London School of Economics
Sahil Sethi
CEO, Maji
Aileen McDonnell
CEO, B4Box
Alison Surtees
Co-Founder, Future's Venture
James Frewin
Founder, OCTOBER®
Elle Sharman
Founder, Swan
Jevan Nagarajah
Founder & CEO, Better Dairy
Camin McCluskey
Co-Founder & CTO, Telescope Analytics
Favour Mandanji Nyikosa
Co-Founder & CTO, Augmize
Serdar Paktin
Founder, pakt
Dr Filip Auksztol
CEO, Quantum Boost Ltd
Stuart Johnson
Founder & CTO, Simple Construction Software
Ashvin Prabaker
Founder, Stealth Startup
David Murray-Hundley
Co-Founder & CEO, Pario Ventures
Ian Merricks
Managing Partner, White Horse Capital
Sam Gordon
Founder, Gordon & Eden
Ross Williams
CEO, Venntro Media Group
Guy Tolhurst
Group CEO, Indagate Group
Andrew Evans
CEO, Smart Pension
Karina Robinson
CEO, Robinson Hambro Ltd
Russ Shaw
Founder, Tech London Advocates & Global Tech Advocates
Stuart Lucas
Executive Chairman, Asset Match Limited
Jack Bartlett
Co-Founder, acceler8
Sharief Abdel-Hadi
Co-Founder & CEO, Apricot
Mark Brownridge
Board Member, EISA
Rajeeb Dey
Founder & CEO, Learnerbly
Alison Cork
CEO, Alison at Home
Sean Ramsden
Founder & CEO, Ramsden International
Charis Sfyrakis
CEO, Algomo
Lance Forman
Owner, Forman & Field
Michael Nabarro
Co-Founder & CEO, Spektrix Ltd
Sandip Gangakhedkar
Co-Founder & CTO, Imperium Drive
Alastair Paterson
CEO, Digital Shadows
Apurva Chitnis
CEO, Sidetrack
Meri Beckwith
Co-founder, Lindus Health
Dana Denis-Smith
CEO, Obelisk Support
Ben Southwood
Senior Fellow, Create Streets
Daniel Pryor
Head of Research, The Adam Smith Institute
John Myers
Founder, London YIMBY