Government research reveals that over half of UK businesses are actively developing innovative new products and services
Results from a government survey of almost 30,000 employers reveals that innovation is at the forefront of UK businesses, with companies in Yorkshire and Humber leading the pack.
53 per cent of UK businesses are actively engaging in developing and introducing new products and ways of making them, as well as new services and ways of doing business – up eight per cent in two years alone.
The positive figures come after Business Secretary Sajid Javid set out his goal to make the UK a world leader in new ideas and innovation – helping increase healthy competition, create jobs and providing new and improved products and services.
Business Secretary Sajid Javid said:
From new disruptive business models to driverless cars, innovation can not only revolutionise the way we live our lives, it can bring real opportunities for businesses to tap into and grow. That is why we are determined to make the UK the best place in Europe to innovate and start a company.
And these figures show that businesses throughout the UK are already leading the way, delivering exciting opportunities across the nation. The number of companies innovating and coming up with new, dynamic ideas is on the rise – up eight percentage points between 2012 and 2014, with over half of businesses now developing new products and services, some with the potential to revolutionise their industries.
Yorkshire and the Humber leads the UK for innovative businesses, with almost two-thirds of businesses engaged in innovation in the region. The East Midlands is also well above the UK average at 57 per cent, and the West Midlands has seen one of the largest increases in business led innovation, up 12 percentage points over two years.
The figures also show how important innovation is to global business success. 28 per cent of innovative businesses were exporting abroad; bringing new British products like advanced medical scanners chargers to an international market. That compares to only 10% of non-innovating businesses.
