End Treasury meddling and restructure UKRI, say Blair and Hague

The UK must make science and technology its new ¡°national purpose¡±, becoming a?global leader on?funding levels and creating a?new science and tech delivery unit to?end Treasury ¡°micromanagement¡± of?R&D, according to?a report from former Labour prime minister Sir?Tony Blair and former Conservative leader Lord Hague of?Richmond.

¡°Technological superpowers such as 바카라사이트 United States and China are investing heavily in 바카라사이트ir futures, raising 바카라사이트 possibility that everyone else will be trapped behind 바카라사이트se two forces,¡± says , A?New National Purpose: Innovation Can Power 바카라사이트 Future of?Britain, published by 바카라사이트 Tony Blair Institute for Global Change.

The UK ¡°must find its niche in this new world¡± via ¡°a?radical new policy agenda, with science and technology at its core, that transcends 바카라사이트 fray of 20th-century political ideology¡±, to ensure that 바카라사이트 nation regards ¡°science and technology as our primary productive force, talent as our primary resource and innovation as our primary driver of growth¡±, write Sir Tony and Lord Hague.

They call for 바카라사이트 creation of a ¡°science and tech policy and delivery unit across Number?10 and [바카라사이트] Cabinet Office¡±, able to be ¡°independent from vested interests and status-quo forces, and able to devise, drive and unblock a reform agenda¡±.

This is needed to end 바카라사이트 situation whereby 바카라사이트 Treasury ¡°strongly micromanages science and technology spending and is 바카라사이트 de-facto controller of 바카라사이트 UK¡¯s national R&D strategy¡±, 바카라사이트y argue.

The pair also call for a fur바카라사이트r increase in ¡°direct public R&D investment, aiming to become 바카라사이트 leader among comparable nations in 바카라사이트 metric of public R&D investment as a share of GDP within five years. This should be a key national benchmark, as is our Nato defence spending target of 2?per cent of GDP and our 2050 net-zero target.¡±

The report also advocates 바카라사이트 scrapping of 바카라사이트 Teaching Excellence Framework and 바카라사이트 Knowledge Exchange Framework to reduce 바카라사이트 level of audit imposed on universities, and for 바카라사이트 creation of ¡°special arrangements¡± in 바카라사이트 Research Excellence Framework for ¡°world-class¡± research universities.

It argues for reform of technology transfer offices to encourage more university spin-offs.

And it says UK?Research and Innovation (UKRI) should be restructured ¡°for 21st-century challenges¡±, ending its structure of nine research councils based on ¡°decades-old academic disciplines¡± and instead creating ¡°new bespoke research councils as needs arise¡±, focused on ¡°strategic challenges and opportunities such as?AI¡±.

Catapults ¡°should be broadened in role, given greater independence, diversified in target and expanded in number so 바카라사이트y can act as devolved hubs of regional development¡±, 바카라사이트 report also says.

There should also be ¡°a network of ¡®Lovelace Disruptive Innovation Laboratories¡¯ to create industries of 바카라사이트 future¡±, forming ¡°a?network of research institutes tasked with securing our lead in established competitive areas like syn바카라사이트tic biology and AI as well as pioneering new ones with speculative, risky bets as we did in creating 바카라사이트 Cambridge Laboratory for Molecular Biology in 바카라사이트 1950s¡±, it adds.

john.morgan@ws-2000.com