Scotland’s technology initiatives need a reboot

Last Monday, Scotland’s first minister went to Stirling to demonstrate how the government he leads is creating a new generation of “entrepreneurs and innovators”.

Humza Yousaf was at one of six Techscalers dotted across Scotland, programmes that offer “free mentoring and advice to early-stage business owners” backed by a £42 million government scheme. A seventh Techscaler, in Dumfries, is to open later this financial year.

Yousaf claims that the initiative, which has so far offered workspaces and mentoring to 318 start-ups, is “the most comprehensive of its kind in Europe”. The Techscalers are all run by a company called Codebase.

Surprisingly, our first minister had nothing to say about the fate of a parallel initiative, CodeClan, which last month filed for liquidation.

Described by some