Scale-Up in the Autumn Budget

The Autumn Budget focussed on the growth and scale-up agenda, delivering many recommendations made by the ScaleUp Institute and the Patient Capital Review.

Talent

• £42 million will be invested in a teacher development pilot to address regional productivity disparities.
• There is £30 million for AI and EdTech in online digital skills courses to target action in sectors with skills shortages.
• £21 million will be invested over the next four years to expand Tech City UK’s reach and support regional tech companies and start

Market

• UK Export Finance (UKEF) will introduce a guarantee to increase supply chain liquidity, improve exporter access to capital and enable suppliers to fulfil new orders.
• UKEF will also launch a campaign to promote its support for exporters and overseas buyers. The Department for International Trade will also set out details of its new export strategy review.
• A £10 million Regulators’ Pioneer Fund will be established to help regulators to develop innovative approaches aimed at getting new products and services to market.

Finance

• A £2.5 billion Investment Fund will be established through the British Business Bank (BBB). The bank will also seed the first wave of investment in private sector funds with up to £500 million.
• Overseas investment in UK venture capital will be backed through the Department for International Trade, which has the potential to unlock £1 billion of investment.
• A National Security Strategic Investment Fund to invest in advanced technologies will be launched. The BBB will also support developing clusters of business angels outside London through a new commercial investment programme./li>
• New and emerging fund managers will be backed through the BBB’s established Enterprise Capital Fund programme, unlocking at least £1.5 billion of new investment.
• The annual allowance for people investing in knowledge-intensive companies through the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) will be doubled from £1m to £2m.
• The BBB’s Enterprise Finance Guarantee will be extended to March 2022, expanding the programme.
• The government will support pension funds investing in innovative firms and the Pensions Regulator will provide investment guidance.
  Overall, these changes are beneficial and will be strongly welcomed by the entrepreneurial and scale-up business communities.

The ScaleUp Institute
www.scaleupinstitute.org.uk

Click here for further information on the ScaleUp Institute and Smith & Williamson’s involvement.

DISCLAIMER
By necessity, this briefing can only provide a short overview and it is essential to seek professional advice before applying the contents of this article. This briefing does not constitute advice nor a recommendation relating to the acquisition or disposal of investments. No responsibility can be taken for any loss arising from action taken or refrained from on the basis of this publication. Details correct at time of writing.