Burnham wants to stop UK start-ups selling up
Key Points
- Andy Burnham hinted at tax changes to keep start-ups in the UK.
- He said British start-ups cannot simply sell up to compete globally.
- Burnham said too many UK ideas get developed and scaled overseas.
- The Budget takes place on 28 October.
- The same speech confirmed new laws against non-compete clauses.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has hinted at tax changes to keep promising start-ups in the UK. Burnham set out the plan at the Innovation Nation Summit in Manchester on Friday (9 October), ahead of the Budget on 28 October.
“If the UK wants to build global companies, we need to be globally competitive,” said Burnham.
“To do that, we cannot have Britain’s start-ups simply sell up,” he added.
Burnham said too many UK firms take their best ideas abroad to scale, along with the jobs and investment they create.
“So one of our biggest challenges is breaking through our own ceiling. Too often, our best ideas are developed and scaled overseas… and with it the jobs, technology, investment that goes with them,” said Burnham.
“So I know there is more to do to fix that, specifically on tax, to encourage people to stay and scale,” he said.
Burnham used the same speech to confirm the government will legislate against non-compete clauses that block hiring at start-ups and scaling firms.
He compared the non-compete change to the Bosman ruling, the 1995 European Court of Justice case that let out-of-contract footballers move freely between clubs.
