Technology Secretary kickstarts plan to bin barriers and back innovators to reap rewards of new tech over next decade and drive Plan for Change

Secretary of State addresses techUK conference and announces new initiatives to supercharge innovation.

• Secretary of State tells techUK Conference there is ‘no route to long-term growth without innovation' in Government efforts to deliver Plan for Change
• Former Science Minister announced as new chair of Regulatory Innovation Office to streamline red tape and bring forward tech like medical delivery drones
• Government funding for game-changing tech like quantum to better understand devastating diseases and cutting-edge telecoms to benefit people across the UK

Backing innovators by tearing down unnecessary barriers that hold back growth will ensure we reap the rewards of rapidly advancing technology over the next decade and drive forward our Plan or Change, Science and Technology Secretary Peter Kyle told an audience in London today (Monday 10 March).

Speaking at techUK's conference, he outlined the potential of technology as a force for good in working people's lives, from drones which could cut delivery times for vital medical items like blood samples, or even takeaways, to climate resistant crops to provide affordable food in the face of floods and droughts.

The Secretary of State declared that there is ‘no route to long-term growth and no solution to our productivity problem, without innovation', he confirmed the government would deliver the first ever dedicated plan for the digital and technologies sector with transparent, adaptable, pro-innovation regulation as a central pillar. Under the government's new plans, red tape that is no longer fit for the opportunities of the 21st century will be peeled away, so that technologies like medical delivery drones – already been used to speed up blood sample delivery in London – can be brought to market quickly and safely. This is work that is currently burdened by unnecessary regulations: taking the drones trial as an example, a single noise complaint could derail the entire project, even though they're being tested in an already-busy city centre.

Peter Kyle outlined a raft of new investments, reforms and appointments aimed at supercharging innovation and helping to grow the economy, whilst also confirming that Lord Willetts, who served as science minister from 2010 to 2014, will be the first chair of the Regulatory Innovation Office (RIO) that will sit at the heart of efforts to make the UK's regulatory regime match-fit for today's innovation era. He also argued for pivotal role that our digital and technology sector can and will play in driving the government's Industrial Strategy – ‘Invest 2035' – a decade-long plan for our economy, focused on high-growth sectors and anchored in a positive and pragmatic vision of Britain's future that reflects our Plan for Change.

Meanwhile regulators will work to understand transformative innovations in engineering biology technologies such as drought-tolerant crops, sustainable fuels, and life-saving medicines, as part of the next round of the Engineering Biology Sandbox Fund - and to work to ensure needless barriers are not holding them back.

The Secretary of State added that while we cannot predict the technologies of the future, we know UK R&D will play a pivotal role and that the UK must be a stable partner that our researchers and businesses can rely on – working with them to tackle the challenges that will define the decade to come.  

The Science and Technology Secretary, Peter Kyle, said:

Everywhere you see, there is an imbalance of power in this country which has – for too long – made it impossible to imagine a better future for Britain.

To deliver our Plan for Change we have to shift the balance of power, away from stagnation and old ideas, towards innovation and opportunity, and the bold people building a new future for Britain.

In doing so, by 2035 we could see a whole new Britain emerge, harnessing the power of technological development, from engineering biology to AI, semiconductors and cyber security, or quantum and future telecoms for a stronger economy and better lives for all in the UK.

As part of the speech, the Science and Technology Secretary also announced:

• The ten winners of Innovate UK's Quantum Missions Pilot, who will receive a share of £12 million each to help accelerate the real-world impact of quantum computing and quantum networking technologies such as by improving financial cybersecurity. This was coupled with the launch of a new Quantum Regulatory Forum, for relevant regulators to help to tee Britain up for the revolution this tech will bring.
• Tech company SEEQC is installing new prototype hardware for quantum computing at the National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) in Oxford. The new chips are designed to help scale-up quantum computing – reducing costs and energy requirements and will see them double their UK headcount.
• We've invested another £23 million in cutting edge telecoms research and deployment that will cement the UK's leadership in advanced connectivity through R&D. It will deliver breakthroughs in getting coverage to places that can't currently receive signals, and support projects delivering real, tangible change for people and businesses across Britain – with smart sensors to prevent damp and mould in social housing in Glasgow or using 5G to help farmers in Sussex monitor vineyards and maximise their yields.
• An overhaul in how AI experiments and other digital projects are funded in the public sector, simplifying the process to cut down waste in taxpayer funding. Four new approaches to putting money behind innovation will be tested from April, including building on the success of GOV.UK Chat, the government's experimental generative AI chatbot, to provide ‘staged funding' for innovation.
• The launch of market engagement, looking for the public-private partnerships needed to meet a 20x increase in capacity of the AI Research Resource by 2030. This was a key commitment of the AI Action Plan, unveiled last year.
• The publication of the Cyber Sectoral Analysis report - which found a positive growth story across the UK from 2023 – 2024 including a more than 20% increase in the sector's value added to the economy to £7.8 billion and an 11% increase in jobs to 67,000 jobs.