Budget Resolutions — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Technology
Gregory David Clark (Independent, Unknown): The creative industries play a crucial role right across the country. The creative industries cluster in Glasgow has given a great deal of boost to that city and that has been matched by a lot of private sector investment. I pay tribute to Sir Peter Bazalgette who led the creative industries review that resulted in that. The money is there now as a result of this settlement and I very much hope that the faith placed in successful programmes such as that will be maintained Let me say a brief word about the fact that the Budget and the spending review provide the necessary funding for our association with Horizon Europe, the European funding system. There are many advantages to that association, as science is inherently international, but we are facing difficulties with the Commission ratifying our application for association. I do worry that the delays are already leading to British research institutions not being included in bids that are being put together for some of the funding that will be available over the next seven years. As every month goes by, the attractiveness of association diminishes. The Chancellor has confirmed to me personally that the Horizon subscription that is listed in the Red Book is guaranteed, available and set aside. It is £1.3 billion this year and rises to £2.3 billion in 2023-24, and more thereafter. We no longer get more out of Horizon than we put in, which was the case when we were a member of the European Union. We also have to pay an administration fee, which I understand to be about £200 million a year, which is about twice the administration cost of running our own domestic innovation programme. Given that and the delay, it seems to me that the science community will want to assure itself that it would not prefer the budget that the Chancellor has guaranteed to be in the hands of UK universities and research establishments so that they can deploy themselves in international collaborations Science is inherently international, so I share the welcome of my right hon. Friend the Member for Sutton Coldfield for the prospects of resuming the 0.7% target on official development assistance. I particularly welcome the increase in the Red Book for ODA funding of science, even within the spending review period. In fact, that will nearly double. The cuts to science programmes that were funded by ODA were a big blow to science, so it is good to see that funding increase A major theme of this Budget is levelling up. British universities and research institutions all across Britain are often the most important institution in their area for driving prosperity. I therefore hope that, with a substantially rising tide of funding, it will be possible to keep faith with the programmes of excellence that we have, while strengthening the contribution made by the regions and nations of the United Kingdom. As Professor Richard Jones of the University of Manchester said in evidence to my Committee, that is literally levelling up—advancing the prospects of the nations and regions without diminishing the investments that we already make The science and research community and my Committee will look in detail at what has been proposed, but we recognise this substantial commitment to science—the biggest ever increase in the science budget. Even if we regret that the £22 billion that was scheduled may be two years late in being delivered, we are relieved that there will be sustained and steady progress towards it. If the economy recovers even more strongly in future years, we hope that we will be able to get there as planned, as originally set out.