June 08, 2026
Britain Should Be Europe’s Silicon Valley. One Thing Is Stopping It.
This article was originally published in The Independent.
This week, founders, investors and politicians from across Europe are gathering at London Tech Week, united by a simple message: they want to build a strong, innovative Europe, and they have the talent and drive to do so. Britain can become Europe’s Silicon Valley – but only if political leaders are prepared to seize the opportunity.
At the heart of the country’s economic struggles is a central weakness that must be fixed: risk aversion. This is not a cultural problem, as is often implied, but institutional.
This country’s future will be defined by a harsh truth: technological disruption is inevitable, but prosperity is not. The countries that win in the coming decades will be those willing to take risks and back innovation. The countries that lose will be those trapped defending old systems, over-regulating growth and avoiding difficult decisions.
Read the full article in The Independent.
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