Budget
The UK Government’s much-anticipated budget on 30 October committed more than £20bn worth of funding for R&D, including an allocation of £6.1bn to protect core research funding for Research England, other research councils and the national academies. However, many in the sector are still working out exactly what the numbers will mean in practice, following earlier fears of an effective cut (£). The table sets out the key figures in the context of the previous year’s budget:
Other notable points on R&D:
- Horizon Europe Funding: Initial concerns that Horizon Europe association and Guarantee payments, potentially worth up to £1 billion, would be absorbed into DSIT’s budget have been clarified by DSIT officials. These funds are indeed accounted for separately, meaning DSIT’s overall R&D budget increase is genuine, not offset by Horizon funding allocations. Of DSIT’s R&D funding, £2.7 billion is designated for the Horizon Association and Horizon Europe guarantee scheme.
- Ten-year budgets: There was a commitment to move to ten-year budgets for “key R&D activities” to support long-term industry partnerships, with further details expected in Phase 2 of the Spending Review. The UK Government also plans capital spending reforms, including a ten-year infrastructure strategy, five-year capital budgets, a new National Infrastructure & Service Transformation Authority (NISTA), and the Office for Value for Money. DSIT will confirm the impact on R&D.
- Industrial Strategy Support: The Budget includes a £25 million multi-year R&D Missions Programme to drive key sectors, including aerospace, automotive, life sciences, and creative industries. Further support includes a new £40 million proof-of-concept fund over five years to encourage investment in university spinouts.
For universities, rumours of a potential rise in tuition fees in England proved unfounded. There was an additional £300m for FE, but universities in contrast will be thrown no lifebelt – and in fact the Universities & Colleges Employers Association estimated that the increase in employer NI and other measures will add around £372 million to the sector’s pay bill. While no fee cap changes were announced, the Department for Education in England is expected to update on Strategic Priorities Grant funding in spring, and a tuition fee uplift remains under consideration ahead of the multi-year Spending Review. The OBR is still forecasting a rise aligned with RPIX, pending legislative approval.
A longer briefing setting out key points from the budget and reaction to it is available on request.
Other news in brief
- ARIs unpacked: A really interesting piece for WonkHE looked at FOI responses about the UK Government’s Areas of Research Interest (ARIs). The ARI database does an excellent job of setting out the specific topics and issues in which the UK Government is interested, and the vast majority of these draw on social science research – but FOI responses showed that researchers’ contributions are not always as valued as one might hope. In the Foreign Office, the ARIs e-mail inbox was left unmonitored for several months, whilst there were several instances across departments of officials being unsure of who held responsibility for responding to enquiries and submissions received. Other data gleaned indicated that Russell Group institutions, and universities with specific policy-orientated research centres, were heavily represented in terms of responses to ARIs – but that overall, the number of academics who make use of the ARI database remains in the low hundreds. All of which points to a huge untapped resource of academic research which could be brought to bear on the policy process.
- FP10 association on the Horizon?: The UK Government has indicated that it might seek to associate to the EU’s next research and innovation programme (Framework Programme 10, the successor to Horizon Europe). On 26 September, DSIT issued a paper indicating that it would “be interested in potentially associating to FP10 assuming it is open, relevant and provides good value for our research community and the UK taxpayer… As such, we are keen to support discussions as FP10 takes shape and engage in its development from the outset”. The paper came amid speculation that the European Commission might soon commence a major shake-up of the R&I programme, as it seeks to enhance the EU’s competitiveness. DSIT statements made in the Commons and in the Lords during October set out the UK Government’s position, advocating for an FP10 which:
- Maintains excellence at the very core of FP10 to harness the full potential of Europe’s research and innovation capabilities across the entire research pipeline.
- Enables the equal participation of likeminded associated countries in all areas of the programme from its very inception, with barriers removed to ensure collaboration on critical technologies between like-minded partners. Maintaining the principle of openness to those who share common goals and values will support the best research and collaboration to tackle these shared challenges.
- Preserves the three-pillar architecture in Horizon Europe, maintaining stable and predictable support for proven elements within Horizon Europe to continue supporting discovery research, international collaboration opportunities and applied innovation respectively. Through a careful balance between curiosity-driven research and applied research and innovation, FP10 should remain flexible and responsive to future global challenges.
- Invest 2035: In mid-October, the UK Government published its green paper on its promised ten-year plan for economic growth. It identifies eight sectors that have the highest potential for growth: Advanced Manufacturing, Clean Energy Industries, Creative Industries, Defence, Digital & Technologies, Financial Services, Life Sciences, and Professional & Business Services. The document promises “ambitious and targeted sector plans… designed in partnership with business, devolved governments, regions, experts and other stakeholders”, overseen by an Industrial Strategy Council. WonkHE have a good write-up.
- More scientists needed in government: Angela McLean, the UK Government’s chief scientific advisor, has argued (£) that more scientists should be leading government departments and advising in Whitehall. Currently, there is one head of a government department from a science background, but she wants to see this grow to 50%.
- Welsh university rescue fund announced – and then withdrawn: Wales’ new minister for tertiary education revealed plans for an emergency fund to support universities amid concerns about an estimated £100m shortfall in the sector, only to row back from them a day later saying that the issue is merely “at a very exploratory stage”.