The Entrepreneurs Network has joined Medium. We'll be using it regularly to write about the policies affecting entrepreneurs and how to make them work better. Here are our first two posts.
Here's our Research Director Sam Dumitriu on why entrepreneurs need planning reform:
"Though a third of young people want to start a business, there are massive barriers to risk-taking activity. Quitting your job to found a company will always be a big step, but it’s an even bigger step when you live from paycheck to paycheck spending up to half your post-tax income on rent. (And that’s before you’ve even looked at the cost of office space.)"
Keep reading.
And here are my thoughts on how to fix the UK’s visa system:
"Rolling the Entrepreneur Visa into the Start-Up Visa would cut out unsuitable applications and unwieldy bureaucracy. Immigrant entrepreneurs will then gain endorsement from government-approved third parties — whether accelerators, venture capital firms or other respected organisations. These sorts of organisations would be regulated by the Home Office to avoid fraud, but they will have skin in the game and the expertise and incentives to evaluate entrepreneurs’ potential. They will also invest in marketing the scheme abroad so people better understand our visa regime."
Read the rest of it here.
News and Views
The UK needs a bold strategy to survive Brexit, according to the Harvard Business Review
London has retained its spot at the top of the tech charts for another year, securing almost double the amount of investment in 2018 than its closest European competitor
The Cabinet Office fails to meet its own late payment targets despite private sector crackdown, while MPs back calls to fine firms for late payments to suppliers
Gove argues that the 'fourth agricultural revolution' can help slash environmental impacts, and praises a new generation of entrepreneurs in the food industry
Automation expert David Autor’s lecture on “Work of the past, Work of the Future”
Why is the US economy becoming less dynamic? It’s down to demographics
Science historian George Dyson’s New Year’s Essay for Edge
Silicon Valley is backing a novel idea: Instead of charging students tuition, students go to school for free and are required to pay back a percentage of their income after graduation, but only if they get a job with a good salary (Sound similar to the UK system? Remember this is a private company with no government guarantees or subsidy)... And they’re coming to the UK
Understanding the enterprise ecosystem can increase the number of women-owned businesses
The British entrepreneur helping solve Germany's migrant language problem
Bosses matter: The effects of managers on workers’ performance
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