Britain must learn to support success

Hossein Yassaie is chief executive of Imagination Technologies, a designer of microships used in 86 million gadgets, including Apple's iPhone. In an article in today's Telegraph, 53-year-old Iranian-born Mr Yassaie laments the "poverty of ambition" in Britain which has left us as a poor relation in the international technology industry.

"Britain should have a host of really big technology brands, like Apple, Microsoft and Google, but we don't," says Mr Yassaie. "Why don't we have Apple? If you go round big technology companies, like Apple, you will find a lot of the people are British." That includes Jonathan Ive, the designer of the the iPod and the iMac.

"We have some of the best brains in the industry, but we don't have the companies or the brands," said Mr Yassaie.

When challenged that Britain couldn't create a new Microsoft or Google, Mr Yassaie is indignant. "Why not? There are massive opportunities out there, but we are not taking them. Success is not celebrated in the UK. In the US the Google guys are adored and everyone wants to be the next Steve Jobs or Bill Gates. It just doesn't happen here."

And therein lies the crux of the problem. Britain used to celebrate glorious failure. Nowadays delete "glorious". We revel in failure, and anyone who is successful (businesses, sportsmen and women, musicians, entertainers, even successful students) are lambasted.

Mr Yassaie has vowed to write a "very long letter" to winner of the general election next year, asking them to address a "long list of problems".

The Government, says Mr Yassaie, must look to give more support to entrepreneurs and start-up businesses.

He is right. We must learn to support success, not failure.