What solutions, introduced at what scales, would increase the access to finance for founders from diverse backgrounds? (i.e. depending on demographic groups/ intersectionality considerations)? What works for different groups? Which are expected to gain maximum impact?

Background

The Digital Economy Unit (DEU) wants to probe and develop evidence on the adoption and potential impact of emerging technologies digital regulation on consumer choice, and the impacts of the new pro-competition digital markets regime. Already, through the Plan for Digital Regulation, the government launched a conversation about how to set the right rules for governing the digital economy.

The Directorate is committed to monitoring and evaluations to inform progress against specific policy measures and the Plan for Digital Regulation. The current key objectives in this regard are delivering:

• An outcomes monitoring framework to monitor trends on key areas of the digital ecosystem that the government is seeking to influence, through regulation alongside broader policy measures.
• Developing and implementing a monitoring and evaluation plan for the new pro-competition regime for digital markets.
• Evaluations of specific governance, regulatory or spending measures.
• Research projects to provide an overarching view of impacts and learning on regulatory measures’ implementation.

The directorate is also interested in forward looking /exploratory research that can inform policy design:
• Research projects on consumer choice in the digital environment.
• Digital workforce - understanding how to develop workforces to ensure we have the skills needed for the UK now, and in the future. This includes considerations around recruitment, retention and progression; and tackling diversity issues in digital and technology jobs. It is vital for the UK to ensure that our workforces are skilled and representative of the population as a whole, so that our systems are designed and built for the needs of everyone.
• Digital ecosystems in UK regions - building on from the Assessing the UK’s regional digital ecosystems research published 1.in 2021. DEU would like to develop evidence on what could be the most efficient solutions in addressing the differing maturity of local ecosystems between, and within, UK regions.
• Identifying emerging technologies - monitoring their adoption amongst both the business and general population, understanding their potential impact, any competition implications, and how government can support their development.
• Digital Economy – improving how we define and measure the digital economy, ensuring that it remains relevant, with digital being a fast-changing area.