Dr Alicia Greated, Executive Director, Campaign for
Science and Engineering (CaSE):
On the budget delivered today:
The Chancellor is clearly pro innovation and recognises the value
it brings to the UK. Alongside the commitment to support
innovative businesses and entrepreneurs, no major announcement of
changes to the structure of R&D spending is a positive to be
taken from today's budget. CaSE and the sector have long been
calling for stability and predictability. Given the machinery of
government changes and the funding restructure at UKRI currently
in the works, it is welcome that this budget brings stability and
no additional large changes. However, as always, we will need to
scrutinise the accompanying documents before making our final
assessment.
There are other developments on the horizon that we also need to
keep a watching brief on. The devolution of R&D funding and
reprioritisation across Government to fund defence could have
significant impact on the research landscape. CaSE will analyse
the detail of all of these as they become available, which we
expect to be in the near future.
On the defence investment plan and cuts to departmental
capital budgets:
We recognise the importance of funding defence and appreciate
that the Government is choosing to spread the cost of cuts across
all departments. However, we are concerned that with departments
having to make savings in their capital expenditure budgets,
R&D may end up being disproportionately targeted.
Departments are being asked to focus on finding efficiencies,
cancelling or delaying lower priority programmes and remaining
ruthlessly focussed on value for money for the taxpayer'. Whilst
each department's capital budget has a different make up, there
is a risk research budgets across the board are seen as more
expendable when put up against major infrastructure and other
procurement costs. It is essential further guidance is given to
departments and oversight provided to ensure that R&D doesn't
become a sacrificial lamb.
