Alex Depledge MBE has been appointed as the first-ever entrepreneurship advisor to the Treasury by Chancellor Rachel Reeves. This groundbreaking role aims to tackle the challenges faced by startups and scale-ups in the UK. Depledge brings extensive expertise to the position, having co-founded and scaled businesses such as Resi and Helpling (formerly known as Hassle.com).
She also served on the boards of several companies and is a non-executive director at Persimmon Homes. The appointment follows the government’s extension of the Enterprise Investment Scheme and Venture Capital Trust schemes to 2035 and an increase in R&D funding to £22.6bn per year by the 2029/30 fiscal year.
Entrepreneurship advisor to the Treasury
Chancellor Rachel Reeves stated, “Startups, scale-ups, and other small businesses drive the innovation that keeps Britain growing, delivering our Plan for Change. Having Alex on the team will bring invaluable expertise from her experience building successful businesses from the ground up, and I look forward to working with her.”
Depledge expressed her enthusiasm for the role, saying, “I’m honored to be appointed as the Chancellor’s first-ever entrepreneurship advisor, a ground-breaking move that puts high-growth businesses at the heart of economic thinking. It signals a bold commitment from the government to back the scale-ups and innovators powering the UK forward.
This is a chance to rewrite the playbook on how we support entrepreneurs, and I’m here to make sure we take full advantage of it.”
The UK is home to over 34,000 scale-ups, which make up just 0.6 percent of SMEs but generate a staggering £1.4 trillion in turnover, contributing 55 percent of all SME revenues. This appointment is expected to bring significant changes to how the government supports entrepreneurship and growth in the UK, with entrepreneurs now having a direct line to the government and benefiting from Depledge’s expertise.
