British Dy. PM praises Asian entrepreneurial spirit at The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) UK Awards 2013

Updated on: Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Britain's Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has hailed the Asian entrepreneurial spirit at an awards ceremony where leading business and industrial magnates, including those of Indian-origin, were honoured.

Clegg told a gathering of leading British Asian entrepreneurs at the The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) UK Awards 2013 at Grosvenor House Hotel, "I am a great admirer of the spirit of entrepreneurship that you embody and the skills that you display, as they are immensely important at this time when we are trying to reinvent the British economy."

Clegg was the key-note speaker at the annual awards ceremony organised by the UK chapter of TiE, the world's largest non-profit organisation focused on entrepreneurship.

The leader of the Liberal Democrat party, alongside pop singer and television star Peter Andre, presented the Global Entrepreneur of the Year Award to Gujarati non-resident Indian Deepak Kuntawala, founder of the DVK Group, a global boutique commodity trading and finance firm.

"Such entrepreneurs embody the valour, courage and experience that is required to take the right kind of risk, which we need to foster. Not the kind of amoral risks taken by governments and the banking system with other people's money," Clegg said.

"As deputy PM, we in government want to play our role in creating the right conditions and right incentives in the tax system. Tell us what you need from us to be able to meet our vision of success, a vision only you can deliver," Clegg said.

Other awards of the evening included, Young Entrepreneur of the Year Tej Lalwani, CEO of global nutraceutical company Vitabiotics; Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Jacqueline Gold, CEO of lingerie brand Ann Summers; and Entrepreneur of the Year James Palumbo, co-founder and chairman of international music and nightclub business Ministry of Sound.

G P Hinduja, president of the Hinduja Group, who traced his own group's journey into the diversified fields of automotive, finance and information technology, said, "London is the best financial centre of the world to do business in and entrepreneurial spirit is the key to a good business. We have just one message for 10 Downing Street: take ideas from entrepreneurs, rather than economists, as it is the entrepreneurs who will find real ways and means to help the economy."

TiE comprises of a network of 13,000 members, including over 2,500 charter members in 57 chapters across 14 countries, with the remit of fostering entrepreneurship globally through mentoring, networking, and education.

Natasha Mudhar, CEO of international communications agency Sterling Media, said, "Aspiring entrepreneurs require guidance, advice and mentoring to fulfil their entrepreneurial aspirations. The UK is a richer place for the establishment of such organisations. The TiE UK Awards celebrates the spirit and ethos of that great thing we call entrepreneurship."

British Dy. PM praises Asian entrepreneurial spirit at The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) UK Awards 2013

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