Business Secretary Says He Would Have Blocked Sale of UK Chip Firm

Business Secretary Peter Kyle said he would have blocked the sale of UK microchip company ARM Holdings to Japanese firm Softbank if he had been in office at the time. The company was purchased for £24 billion in 2016 and later listed on the New York Stock Exchange, where it is now valued at £285 billion.

Kyle told the BBC that ARM Holdings could have become the largest company on the London Stock Exchange and might have reached 40 percent of the way toward becoming a trillion-dollar firm.

Kyle said the government would increase taxpayer investment in promising technology companies and create a cross-government service to help firms obtain skills, finance, and other support. He added that the goal is to create conditions that keep companies from wanting to leave rather than using powers only to block sales after the fact.

Kyle also said he regretted the 2014 acquisition of UK artificial intelligence company DeepMind by Google, noting that while the firm continues to operate in the UK, the wealth it generates goes elsewhere. The government has recently announced investments in energy software company Kraken, self-driving firm Wayve, and a UK-focused technology fund called Playground Global.

Kyle acknowledged that other sectors face pressure, particularly hospitality, which has seen increases in the national living wage and employers' national insurance contributions. He pointed to a recent decision to phase in business rate rises for pubs more gradually than first planned.

Kyle said the government is working with former Health Secretary Alan Milburn on measures to address the number of young people not in employment, education, or training, which has topped one million.