A a £4.1m plan to speed up the growth of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in Liverpool City Region’s tech industries has been unveiled by Mayor Steve Rotheram.
The 'tech accelerator' is designed to create new jobs by providing "intensive support, mentoring and investment" for up to 60 start-up businesses over five years.
If approved at today's combined authority meeting, the initiative will aim to give local businesses a "reason to stay and grow" in the city region as well as attracting national and international start-ups, mentors and investors.
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Mr Rotheram said: "SMEs are the cornerstone of our economy, accounting for 99% of all businesses in the Liverpool City Region. They are fundamental to our present and future success, and I want to support those businesses operating in those future-facing industries to expand and take their business to the next level.
"We want businesses to help us to create well-paid, secure jobs and training opportunities, attract investment and bring greater prosperity to our communities. They can also deliver a greater return on our investment while keeping more of the money we spend in the local economy, meaning that we get much more bang for our buck.
"We're already home to one of the country’s most advanced tech clusters - and the appetite for their services is only going to get bigger as we become an increasingly technological society.
"I want to harness the expertise here in our region and establish ourselves as a leader on the global stage. We can only do that by empowering our SMEs to grow and succeed - and I'm hoping this investment will help to unleash their full potential."
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