LONDON, March 16 (Reuters) – British finance minister Rachel Reeves said on Monday the government would spend up to 1 billion pounds ($1.33 billion) on powerful quantum computers to help develop the quantum sector and boost the wider economy.
The new procurement programme is part of a 2 billion-pound plan to upgrade Britain’s quantum capability, including 1 billion pounds of previously announced spending, the finance ministry said.
Quantum computers are capable of working on multiple possible solutions simultaneously and can speed up innovation in areas such as medical diagnostics, greenhouse gas monitoring, and secure communications.
Reeves and Prime Minister Keir Starmer told voters before the 2024 election that they would accelerate Britain’s slow economy. But so far growth has remained weak and could be hit by fallout from the conflict in the Middle East.
Reeves was due to say in a speech on Tuesday in the City of London financial district that a 500 million-pound “Sovereign AI Fund,” which was announced last year, would be launched in April to help British artificial intelligence firms.
She would also say that closer ties with Europe and stronger regional growth were central to the government’s strategy along with its tech push, the finance ministry said.
Starmer wants to reduce post-Brexit barriers to trade and cooperation with the European Union. But he has ruled out joining the EU’s single market, limiting talks to areas such as rules for businesses and freer movement for young people.
($1 = 0.7514 pounds)
(Writing by William Schomberg; editing by William James)