The new round of government spending on national science is intended to help the UK compete globally in science and technology, confront environmental challenges such as climate change, and revive the country’s science education base, according to the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS). The government’s 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) announced an average annual increase of 2.5 per cent in the budget for the public science base over the next three financial years, to reach an annual figure of £6.3 billion by 2010–11.

The 2007 CSR supports full implementation of the recommendations of the Cooksey Review, which proposes a single, integrated strategy and fund for all health research, to amount to £1.7 billion by 2010. It also specifies £1 billion for a programme of business innovation, which will be led by the Technology Strategy Board in partnership with the Research Councils and the Regional Development Agencies.

No public input
While the spending review claims in its title to be ‘meeting the aspirations of the British people’, sources suggest it did not draw explicitly on public input. However, a coincident report from Research Councils UK claims that investment in science can help improve the quality of life for the public.

Excellence with Impact, which sets out the effects of past investments, finds that the Research Councils’ annual expenditure of around £2.8 billion ‘translates into world-class research, which leads to profitable breakthroughs, improved health and public policy, and a better quality of life for British people.’ These quality of life benefits, says the report, take the form of healthcare, the prediction of environmental impacts, social welfare benefits and cultural advances.

The Research Councils welcomed the science budget allocations. Speaking on behalf of RCUK, Professor Ian Diamond said: ‘The Research Councils believe that multidisciplinary research is needed to solve many of the next decade’s major research challenges. Extra funding will allow us to continue our collaborative work to address the emerging problems of the 21st century.’ The Councils expect the research focus to be on the areas of energy; living with environmental change; global security; ageing research; nanoscience and the digital economy.

Plaudits and brickbats
Elsewhere, responses to the science spending boost were largely positive, including those from the Royal Society, the Medical Research Council and the Campaign for Science and Engineering (CaSE).

However the UK Resource Centre for Women in Science, Engineering and Technology (UKRC) expressed disappointment that the government had missed an opportunity to bring together other science priorities, particularly the aim of increasing the participation and progression of women within science, engineering and technology careers. CaSE had its concerns too: ‘While the science budget for Research Councils and higher education has increased over the last ten years, funding for science commissioned by government departments … has decreased by a comparable amount.’

Vanessa Spedding is the Shorts Editor