Too often we hear that Britain’s best days are behind us. That we are destined to be in the shadow of other, bigger nations — that stagnation is inevitable.
But I am an optimist. I believe there is a more positive story to tell about our country and that this government has a plan to build a better future.
The route to stronger growth — and the answer to how we pay our way and compete with the rest of the world — will be led by science, technology and innovation.
This government is putting the biggest ever investment into research and innovation, and this week at the Science Museum I announced a package of £38.6 billion for UK research and innovation projects over the next four years.
For the first time, we’re earmarking £9 billion of this funding for research and development specifically targeted at our industrial strategy sectors — to back UK strengths like life sciences and the creative industries — as well as £7 billion to help fledgling businesses scale up.
This is a once-in-a-generation shift in how the UK funds research: not only to power discovery, but specifically to support research that can be applied and put to real-world use. Whether that’s finding a new way to treat a disease, a new source of clean energy or a new product that can be brought to market.
We know this funding works. Every £1 spent on public R&D generates £8 in benefits for the country over the long term. And businesses that receive R&D grants see their workforce increase by 21 per cent and their turnover increase by 23 per cent over six years, on average, compared with their peers. This means real jobs and money in people’s pockets.
Building on this vote of confidence in our world-leading scientists, researchers and innovators was a budget that backed entrepreneurs with a big package of measures to help founders start up, scale up, and stay in the UK.
We’ve doubled eligibility for the enterprise management incentive — giving employees of growing companies access to share options with tax discounts, so that people have a stake in our tech future. We doubled investment limits for venture capital schemes, to attract capital to UK shores. We’re changing government procurement rules, so more firms — big and small — can benefit from government contracts. And for the first time, UK-listed companies will have a three-year stamp duty holiday, giving them a compelling reason to stay and grow in the UK.
These measures will get more people investing in our stock market and pave the way for the next generation of entrepreneurs and tech unicorns on home soil.
Finally, this government and this budget are backing brilliant British AI. In the past 11 months alone we have announced four new artificial intelligence growth zones, bringing thousands of jobs, billions of pounds of investment and transforming opportunities in the northeast, Oxfordshire and south and north Wales. To support these, we’ve announced £5 million for each growth zone to support business adoption and skills in the local area.
We’ve also announced a £500 million sovereign AI fund to back promising British businesses and pledged a ground-breaking advance market commitment which will see the government support British AI chip companies so they can grow and compete.
• Loudest voices are full of gloom but businesses are quietly confident
And we’re boosting AI adoption across the economy because we know that countries that adapt to change are also the countries that are most likely to benefit from technological advances.
That’s why, alongside our commitment to give 7.5 million workers the skills they need for the AI age, the budget announced new expert AI champions across the economy and expanded our BridgeAI scheme: a one-stop-shop where firms can come to ask about funding, guidance or AI training for their workforce.
Together, these measures add up to one of the biggest endorsements of UK science, technology and innovation our country has ever seen. We are backing private enterprise with public ambition. We are renewing the country and spreading jobs and prosperity to all parts of the UK. While others look back to the past, I am confident our best days are yet to come.
Liz Kendall is secretary of state for science, innovation and technology