By Paul Vousden, Client Development Director at 350 PPM, the London-based incubator and accelerator for early-stage clean tech solutions.
Labour has been elected with a spectacular landslide majority and the country has voted for change, which of course was the campaign message that was relentlessly pursued for weeks on end.
The other key themes from the Labour campaign are economic growth, a huge emphasis on achieving net zero and ensuring the UK has renewable energy, sustainable housing, and much more focus on cleaner technologies that will support the planet.
This is an ideal time for climate tech companies to show their capabilities and create wealth, jobs and prosperity for the UK.
The challenge for Labour in achieving growth is the lack of public funds available to kick-start new economic activity. They have spent a lot of time with businesses and investment houses to gauge the appetite of the private sector to get involved.
At 350PPM, we work with early-stage climate tech companies that have fantastic ideas but lack the investment funding to get them started. Time and again we see companies that have huge potential to grow and become global players, but they are constrained by the lack of capital.
What can the new Labour government do to encourage and nurture this emerging generation of brilliant new companies that can contribute massively to the green agenda as well as creating jobs, export and wealth for the UK economy?
The EIS and SEIS schemes have been a great way of encouraging investment in early-stage companies. Investors can benefit from tax relief on their investments in early-stage and potentially high-risk companies. If the government can continue these schemes and encourage greater investment in clean tech companies by offering larger tax relief on these investments, that would be a great boost.
Whilst there are government grants available, finding your way through the maze of schemes and awarding authorities is time-consuming, confusing and frustrating for a start-up that just wants to concentrate on building a great product and a successful business. We would really benefit from a simpler system where startups can be directed and fast-tracked to ensure they receive the support they need in a timely fashion.
Banks are often seen as the first point of contact for investment, but startups find it incredibly difficult to secure funding here; in fact, opening a business account can be a mission itself. If the whole banking process could be tailored more to encouraging start-ups this would help to streamline the process.
Necessity is the mother of invention.
The race to reach net zero is on and we only need to observe the dramatic changes in global weather patterns to see the damage and destruction that is caused by tornados, flooding, tsunamis, and much more, is having a devastating effect on many countries. At the very least, poor weather conditions are increasingly disrupting farming, so crop yields are lower and prices continue to increase.
The UK has a long history of innovation success stories and some really fantastic engineers as well as exciting university spin-outs, who with the right support mechanisms, can solve many of the modern challenges we face today.
The UK is a good place to do business with light touch regulation and relatively low taxation, so entrepreneurs are attracted to setting up here. Indeed, it’s the perfect place to start a brilliant climate tech business.
Overall, we are in a good position to make enormous progress in tackling climate change challenges but to ensure the UK does make a major impact we urge the new government to back our clean tech companies that will not only improve the quality of our lives but contribute hugely to the UK’s need for economic growth. The UK is already a leader in climate tech – now’s the time to make it the number one country for start-ups in this sector.
About 350 PPM
350PPM is on a mission to reduce the amount of CO₂ in the atmosphere to 350 parts per million and reduce CO₂e (equivalent greenhouse gases) to similar levels. It operates as a central legal entity whose purpose is funding and assisting breakthrough environmental businesses. As a result, the companies selected for its portfolio are those that can make the biggest impact on reducing the level of CO₂ per USD invested. It operates as an incubator and accelerator participating directly in the development of client companies to support success, and its portfolio currently includes Eng8, Megawatt Mosaic and GreenMine.
Find out more at https://350ppm.co.uk/ and follow www.linkedin.com/company/350-ppm-ltd/ for regular news updates.
This information and further details from Jane Maher at 350PPM
T: 07887 995 589
