McKinsey: How is the UK performing today on sustainability and corporate performance?
Tunde Olanrewaju: So, when we break out the SIG (sustainability, inclusion, and growth) targets, the first part to talk about is sustainability, and our sustainability aspirations. When you look at emissions, the UK is actually performing relatively stronger than other European markets, with lower emissions per capita. On the other hand, when you look at its use of fossil fuels as a share of the energy actually consumed in the UK, it’s a little bit higher. So there’s a ways to go, but a real bright spot.
Another aspect of sustainable, inclusive growth is the growth part, and unfortunately, the UK has somewhat underperformed on that dimension versus the US. It’s still in line with what you use across Europe, but we still see lots of opportunity. But the UK is really outperforming in technological innovation, another real bright spot and area where the UK might actually pull ahead.
For instance, in 2021, the UK had 121 tech unicorns, and attracted something like 30 percent of all the technology venture capital investment flowing into Europe. Relative to the rest of Europe, that’s quite a substantial share, something like $30 billion. So when you really step back, you see massive potential, but also some headwinds the UK has to navigate.