Seizing the benefits of start-ups

A £17.5 million funding package will be delivered this year to help establish Scotland as one of Europe’s leading start-up economies.

In a statement to Parliament, Wellbeing Economy & Fair Work Secretary Neil Gray set out a range of actions and investments this year to support entrepreneurs and start-up businesses, which are worth nearly £1 billion to the Scottish economy.

He also announced that the Scottish Government will take forward the recommendations of the Pathways report on supporting women in entrepreneurship. These include:

• developing pre-start centres and pop-ups focused on encouraging women to start businesses and providing best-in-class support to help them develop products and get early access to funding.
• relaunching the Scottish Government’s Ecosystem Fund with an explicit focus on supporting projects that address the report’s key themes
• continuing funding for key partner organisations including Women’s Enterprise Scotland, Investing Women, Business Women Scotland and Scottish Edge
• working with enterprise agencies, the Scottish National Investment Bank, and private sector investors to open up access to investment avenues for women-led businesses and other under-invested groups

The First Minister recently launched a ten-year plan to help create world-class entrepreneurial campuses at 45 universities and colleges across Scotland, with a £5.5 million increase in the 2023-24 University Innovation Fund helping deliver the plan and support wider efforts to turn world-leading research into important innovations.

The Wellbeing Economy & Fair Work Secretary said:

“We have all of the raw ingredients necessary to match the leading European exemplars: a proud tradition of innovation and entrepreneurship, a university system that is the envy of the world, and exceptional capability in emerging industries such as clean energy, life sciences and artificial intelligence.

“Over the last three years we have worked closely with Scotland’s Chief Entrepreneur Mark Logan to produce a series of publications that, together, form a sophisticated and comprehensive plan to make this vision a reality.

“I want to thank Ana Stewart for leading the Pathways review of Women in Entrepreneurship and am pleased to commit to take forward the recommendations of the report. We have a moral and economic duty to do more to support women to start and grow successful businesses.

“This is a package of vision and aspiration that sends a clear and powerful message to Scotland’s innovators, entrepreneurs and disruptors - this Government believes in you and we are prepared to back you.”

Background

The Scottish Government’s full response to Pathways: A New Approach for Women in Entrepreneurship is available on the Scottish Government website.

Mark Logan was appointed Chiedf Entrepreneur in July 2022.

A ten-year plan to help create world-class entrepreneurial campuses at 45 universities and colleges across Scotland was announced by the First Minister on 27 June 2023.

Encouraging entrepreneurship is a key action in the Scottish Government’s National Strategy for Economic Transformation.

The Scottish Government is increasing the number of start-ups through the national £42 million TechScaler network which offers mentoring and incubation space for new tech businesses.