Business News Round Up (08/09/2026)
SE sees exports support fall and write-offs rise
Scottish Enterprise saw a lower level of export support last year and was also forced to write off more than £21 million invested in failed early-stage companies. The development agency said it helped “ambitious Scottish businesses” generate £2.15 billion in exports in the year to the end of March 2026, down from £2.46bn in the previous year. A press release headlined 2025/26 as a “record” year but then described it as “one of” Scotland’s strongest international trade performances of the past five years. Its £50m of investment in 105 early-stage companies leveraged £163m in private and other public sector support. Among highlights was backing the £40m expansion of Prestwick Airport with £11.6m, creating 450 jobs. However, it “abandoned or waived” £21.2m invested in 43 companies. Among 18 failed investments of above £300,000 it listed electric vehicle charging firm Trojan Energy and photonics business M Squared Lasers.
Chancellor John Healey refuses to rule out further tax rises
Chancellor John Healey has claimed growth is at the “heart of fiscal challenges” facing the UK, as he refused to rule out tax rises ahead of his maiden Budget next month. The Chancellor ignored questions about whether households and businesses were set to face another set of tax rises in October, following his first major speech in Coventry. Mr Healey laid out his plans to focus on boosting growth “in more places” and stressed the importance of securing the public finances. In response to questions from the media, he promised the government would keep to its 2024 manifesto pledges ruling out hikes to income tax, VAT and national insurance. In his speech, he said that growth was “indivisible” from fiscal stability, explaining that higher growth would be the UK’s “sustainable pathway out of indebtedness and into prosperity.”
Glasgow tech sector worth £5.6 billion to national economy, according to new report
Glasgow’s tech sector is now worth £5.6 billion to the national economy according to a new report which shows half the value is being driven by startups established in the last 10 years. The city region’s tech and innovation economy has expanded 2.4x since 2020, with more than £300 million in venture capital investment secured since 2025, per the new report commissioned by Glasgow City Council. Produced in association with Dealroom, the global market data platform founded in Amsterdam, it shows Glasgow is among the UK’s top 10 hubs in the 2026 Tech Ecosystem Index by scale, growing faster than London and Oxford. More than 130 university spinouts have been produced with 112 still active and headquartered in the region, valued collectively at £1.1 billion, the report shows.
£80m fund extension announced by PXN Ventures and British Business Bank’s NPIF II
PXN Ventures and the British Business Bank have announced an £80m extension to NPIF II – PXN Equity Finance, taking the fund’s total size from £100m to £180m. The extension will allow PXN to invest in more of the North West’s ambitious businesses through to 2030, following significant demand during the fund’s first two years. Since launching in 2024, PXN has received more than 3,000 applications and invested in excess of £45m in 50 businesses, unlocking around £50m of additional co-investment. The fund provides equity investment of up to £5m to businesses across Greater Manchester, Merseyside, Cheshire, Lancashire and Cumbria. Its portfolio spans sectors including software, artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing, life sciences, fintech and climate technology. The extension follows a strong period of exits for PXN and the Northern businesses it has backed.