Labour seizes agenda on economic growth in a post-Brexit Britain

Labour today (Thursday) announces its ambition for bold thinking to make Britain the high growth, start-up hub of the world, as they launch the results of their review  ‘Start-Up, Scale Up’ to an audience of 350 business leaders in Canary Wharf.

The independent review will set out a radical plan for success, with Labour aiming to get the country off its current path of Tory economic decline, and stop other countries eating our lunch with stats showing, for example, how French start-ups are pulling in record funds.

Labour’s Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves will outline the findings of the party’s start-up review, which was led by independent peer Jim O’Neill, including recommendations to:

• Remove barriers to institutional investment in high growth firms
• Help make innovation born in universities become a reality
• Give the British Business Bank real independence to allow it to bring in more investment into the economy.

While the government has vacated the ground when it comes to shaping a successful post-Brexit economy, Reeves is expected to say that Labour will stake their claim on the new industries of the future that are needed to get the British economy growing.

She will also say that the recommendations are the first step in closing the £16 billion investment gap in high-growth firms that the UK is currently missing out on.

It follows increasing activity by Labour to make Brexit work by fixing the holes in the Tories’ disastrous Brexit deal. 

Keir Starmer and Reeves will be speaking at the party's business conference, which includes a line-up of shadow ministers and high-profile business leaders such as the CEOs of Aviva, SSE and HSBC, and the Chair of Tesco, Sir John Allan. 

Speaking at the event, Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, Rachel Reeves is expected to say:

“These are challenging economic times. But I know the spirit of enterprise, of creativity, of endeavour are as present in Britain today as they ever have been.

“We are at a post-Brexit crossroads. We can go down the road of managed decline, falling behind our competitors, or we can draw on bold thinking to propel us forward.

“That is why Labour today welcome this radical plan to make Britain the high growth, start-up hub of  the world.

“Start-Up, Scale-Up provides crucial insights towards achieving one of the guiding ambitions of the next Labour government: to make Britain the best place to start, and to grow, a business. And it sends a powerful message: that Labour is back in business.”

Independent peer, Lord Jim O’Neill said:

“The more all political parties support the eco-system of start-ups for the UK, the more they become entwined in the DNA of policy thinking for the future.

“Leading this review has underlined the huge potential Britain’s start-ups have for changing our economic fortunes, especially in towns and cities outside of London.

“I welcome the Shadow Chancellor’s enthusiastic focus on this space and have been pleased to play a part in this review.”

Commenting on the review Rachel Pendered, Founder & Co-CEO, Media Zoo, said:

“Start-up, Scale-Up is a game-changing plan to unlock Britain’s entrepreneurial potential.

“It is a brilliant road map to greater funding and to utilise the potential of our universities, alongside a powerful strategy to create greater venture capital and pension fund investment in both start-up and scale-up businesses.

“We are living in extraordinary times. So to see this carefully thought-through proposition that is designed to actually make a difference to the entrepreneurial landscape in Britain is very exciting.

“It is more important than ever to remove barriers and make opportunities easier to access for all, including female and diverse founders. Most importantly, it is great to see that Rachel Reeves and the Labour Party are looking at the practical solutions for a sustainable, dynamic environment to help business and innovation in Britain thrive.”

Oli Barrett MBE, serial co-founder and co-host of the Great British Entrepreneur Awards, said:

“I meet hundreds of entrepreneurs every year and this report really resonates with many of the challenges they face.

“It isn't afraid to praise and support what works, alongside what needs to change and it identifies clear areas for development (including on university spin-outs) and bolder thinking (including on unlocking institutional investment).

“It's refreshing to see Labour speaking the language of start-ups and scale-ups, and going beyond listening to having a clear set of recommendations to make a positive difference.”

Dirk Mischendahl, Founder and Director, Northen Bloc, said:

“It's fantastic to see the Labour Party and Rachel Reeves getting behind smaller and growing businesses, which for too long have been underappreciated and misunderstood.

“Driving a business forward which is innovative and disruptive is difficult enough without having to also deal with the complications that finance and raising capital for great ideas brings.

“As Rachel Reeves says, innovation is a great British strength and should not be fraught with difficult obstacles and unnecessary administration.

“This review is an exciting step forward in supporting small business to grow, backing young entrepreneurs in the UK and forging a path to a stronger economy for future generations.”

Ends

Notes:

Start-Up, Scale Up will be launched at Labour’s Business conference on Thursday 8December at East Wintergarden in Canary Wharf. A sell-out event, it will host 350 business leaders from across sectors as Labour set’s out its continuing commitment to an active partnership with business in government.

Top line findings from the Start-Up Review include:

The ‘Start-Up, Scale Up’ review has produced a number of policy recommendations that a future Labour government should consider. They include recommendations on mobilising more institutional capital to finance growth, incentivising investment, supporting entrepreneurs from all backgrounds, and ensuring institutions serve the start-up and scale-up ecosystem as well as possible. Recommendations include:

• Unlocking institutional investment and patient capital: Britain should draw on the experience of the successful Tibi scheme in France, to build engagement and understanding between institutional investors and VCs, which will unlock billions of investment into high-growth companies.
  
  
• Transforming the British Business Bank: Labour should ensure the BBB has the level of independence, remit and aspiration it needs to succeed, as well as the ability to leverage external funds to amplify its work. It should use its support to foster clusters around groups of universities to drive growth and investment across the whole of the UK.
  
  
• Translating world-leading research into growth: A Labour government should publish, annually, a dashboard summarising each university’s offer to spinouts and metrics of each university’s spinout success. It should also recommend that all universities offer a range of options for spinout founders to choose from, including an option where the university keeps a relatively small stake of equity. 
  
  

Methodology: The review and its recommendations are the result of extensive consultation with entrepreneurs, investors, and policy-makers. The panel spoke to more than 120 industry leaders at a series of roundtables across the country, and reviewed a wide-ranging set of responses to a call for evidence.

Panellists on the Start-Up Review were:

Tom Adeyoola is a technology entrepreneur passionate about disruptive technology for societal and climate good. He was CEO and founder of acquired apparel technology scale-up Metail (2008-2019). He is currently a co-founder of non-profit Extend Ventures, which aims to diversify access to finance for underrepresented founders through data and research. He also serves as non-executive director for zero carbon monitoring consultancy Verco and environmental behavioural change start-up ‘Do Nation’.  In addition, he is an active angel investor, chair of mindfulness app Spoke, governor of his former school St. Paul’s, a member of the London Mayor’s Business Advisory Board and served on the board of the women’s personal wellness scale-up Elvie from 2013 to2017. 

Alex Depledge is the CEO and co-founder of Resi.co.uk, the UK’s largest home improvement platform. As of 2022, Resi has helped over 5000 homeowners transform their properties and employs over 100 residential, financial, and coding experts. Recently named as one of the UK’s 30 female founders to watch by the Financial Times, Alex has also earned herself an MBE for her services to the British tech industry. Her first start-up – founded with her long-standing business partner, Jules Coleman – Hassle.com, went on to become Europe’s largest domestic cleaning marketplace and sold for a reported £27 million.

Julie Devonshire is the director of the Entrepreneurship Institute at King’s College London supporting students, alumni and staff to learn entrepreneurial skills, acquire experience and launch start-ups of their own. Over the last five years, King’s has supported more than 120 ventures that have collectively raised £55.5m in investment and employ over 400 people. Julie is also an ACCA Fellow and award-winning social entrepreneur, receiving an OBE in 2016 for her services to entrepreneurship in the Queen’s 90th Birthday Honours List.

Lord Jim O’Neill is a cross bench peer, and non-executive chairman of Northern Gritstone. He was chief economist, Goldman Sachs (2001-2013) and chairman, Goldman Sachs Asset Management (2010-2013). From 2015, Jim served as a government minister with responsibility for championing the Northern Powerhouse and focused on driving innovation in the north of England. Jim remains deputy chairman of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership. Jim is an alumnus of the University of Sheffield and is an Honorary Professor of Economics at the University of Manchester.