Whitehall departments to set decade-long R&D investment plans

The government has made good on a manifesto pledge to move on from a system in which budgets are set for the year ahead, and adopt much longer-term support models

The government will support Whitehall departments in setting ten-year budgets for research and development activities.

To date, budgets have usually been set on an annual basis, which researchers claim often becomes a barrier when trying to secure long-term investment or plans.

However, ahead of the general election last year, the Labour party pledged to scrap short funding cycles in favour of ten-year budgets, if it came into government – a pledge it has now made good on. It formed part of the party’s plans to drive innovation, under which it also said it would simplify procurement and make the UK “the best place to start and grow a business”.

The long-term funding is set to provide further certainty for research organisations, help attract “vital business investment” and boost the UK economy, science minister Patrick Vallance said.

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Specific funding is to be revealed over the coming weeks, but initial recipients are expected to include a range of projects from quantum computing to health technology – both sectors at the heart of the government’s plan for change.

Quantum innovation is set to underpin minister’s plans to tackle crime, fraud, and money laundering, while artificial intelligence solutions are a key tool set to help deliver ministers’ ambition to cut waiting times.

Lord Vallance – who held the civil service post of government’s chief scientific adviser from 2018 to 2023 – said: “Research and innovation, from computing and AI to health breakthroughs need stability of funding. We are delivering on our manifesto commitment to support and encourage public bodies to deliver long-term, ten-year funding streams where appropriate, while retaining the flexibility of shorter-term cycles to deal with emerging priorities. This change will provide certainty to certain types of research organisations and unlock vital business investment into our world-class research sector to drive the growth at the heart of our plan for change.”

The criteria which will be used by public bodies to identify relevant ten-year funding proposals include whether projects could contribute to critical infrastructure; help fix talent shortages; encourage international collaboration and if there is a “demonstrable need for long-term partnerships with industry”.

Although organisations will be responsible for selecting the funding proposals, they are expected to follow government guidance on the frequency and amount of money given out. The guidance outlines there should be a maximum limit for the proportion of R&D budget that should be allocated to ten-year funding at any one time, in a bid to remain agile in the face of emerging priorities.