Earlier this month I invited experts from Google to meet local business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs in Stratford-on-Avon. The team from Google ran a workshop offering attendees advice and tips on making the most of the Internet and growing their business online, and I was delighted to see over 50 businesses take up the opportunity at a lively event at the Riverside in Stratford. The team from Google covered crucial skills for the digital age, including how to set up a website, how to make the most of social media and how to learn more about your customer base and market your business online. As someone who founded a technology company, I know from personal experience that businesses with a strong online presence grow faster. Now is a crucial time for UK businesses to develop their online offer. The UK is already No 1 country for e-commerce, and the internet economy is worth over £120bn, accounting for 8.3% of UK GDP. This is likely to increase to 12% by 2016. As a country we are already doing well, and I hope events like these can spur us on even further. Research from the National Institute of Economic and Social Research recently estimated that the Warwick and Stratford-on-Avon region already has over 1,650 digital companies. I want to see this number get even bigger, because that will create the jobs and growth our local economy needs.