London’s tech sector is not used to feeling vulnerable. The capital recently reclaimed its position as Europe’s leading technology ecosystem, ranking fourth worldwide (behind the Bay Area, New York and Boston — all in the US) in a table collated by tech deal tracker Dealroom. The capital’s companies raised $17.7 billion in venture capital last year and it is home to 138 “unicorns” — firms valued above $1bn.
But new Prime Minister Andy Burnham arrived in Downing Street late last month and it has prompted an unusual bout of nerves. The former Manchester mayor has created No 10 North, promising to move power out of SW1. Not only that, he has abolished the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), the Whitehall home created only three years ago in order to give tech a louder voice. The panic began before Burnham had taken office. One Labour MP reportedly called the closure “getting rid of the department of the future”.
