Global Entrepreneurship Monitor: UK Report 2021/22

The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) research consortium measured rates of entrepreneurship across multiple phases in 47 economies in 2021, making it the world’s most authoritative comparative study of entrepreneurial activity in the general adult population. In the UK in 2020, 10,044 adults aged 18 to 80 participated in the GEM survey. This monitoring report for the UK compares GEM measures of entrepreneurial attitudes, activity and aspirations in the UK, France, Germany and the United States. It also compares the results across the four home nations of the UK. The results from the GEM UK Adult Population Survey (APS) and National Expert Survey (NES) for 2021 provide a unique opportunity to lift the lid on a range of issues which lie at the heart of the entrepreneurial process in the midst of the crisis. As it turned out Q2 in the UK witnessed further spikes in the COVID-19 virus, but the UK removed all restrictions on 19th July 2021 in the middle of our fieldwork period. The specific COVID-19 questions in the surveys need to be understood against that context. Overall, there appears to be a positive perception that the pandemic has brought in new opportunities across all entrepreneurial activity stages, and positive trend in digital adoption by start-ups. Over 50% of early-stage entrepreneurs agreed that in response to the pandemic they either have adopted new technologies or enhanced plans to improve or invest in new digital technologies.