This was submitted on May 9th, 2025 to the UK Parliament’s Science, Innovation and Technology Committee inquiry into science diplomacy.
The UK has an outsized impact on science and technology: it is the 4th largest publisher of scientific papers, is host to 4 of the top 10 global universities in life sciences, and British citizens have won the 2nd most Nobel Prizes of any nationality worldwide. The UK also has what is widely recognised as the world’s second most attractive startup ecosystem for biotechnology companies (behind the US), and certainly the most attractive in Europe.
Despite this, the UK is widely recognised as a poor choice of place for taking innovative ideas from the bench and scaling up into industry without foreign intervention. In our submission of evidence to the House of Commons Science, Innovation and Technology Committee we draw on extensive experience in biosecurity, innovation policy, and international collaboration to identify structural barriers preventing the UK from capitalising on its scientific strengths.
Key Recommendations
- Drastic cuts to visa costs to attract scientific talent to the UK
- Leveraging HMG/NHS procurement pathways to encourage specific innovations in the UK.
- This could be done in a manner akin to the USA’s BioPreferred scheme, which was highlighted as a good example of a preferential Government procurement scheme in a recent House of Lords Science and Technology Committee report.
- Centralising the Government’s life science funding opportunities into a single hub that industry and academia can readily access.
- We recommended this in our recent report entitled “Growing the UK Bioeconomy“, which contains other recommendations specific to improving biosecurity and bolstering the life science sector.
- Mandating that British Local Government pension funds, once consolidated into “megafunds” as announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, invest in British equities.
- Ensuring that the rate of relief from R&D tax credits remains competitive with other highly active scientific nations.
- Restricting categories of science and technology startups which can be “poached” (or purchased) without intervention from HMG to safeguard onshore development of key technologies with critical national security implications.
- Fostering investor confidence in the UK biotech sector, as this is often highlighted as a limit on drawing inward investment.
While the UK’s reputation in science and innovation remains strong, it is at risk unless long-standing structural barriers – especially high visa costs and insufficient support for scaling innovation – are addressed. Science diplomacy should focus on making the UK an attractive destination for global talent and investment, while enabling innovative companies to mature domestically. Sustained engagement in major international collaborations and the restoration of reliable development assistance funding are essential for maintaining leadership and influence in global science.
For our full submission to the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee, please click the ‘Download’ button below.
Suggested citation: Fady, Paul-Enguerrand. 2025. “House of Commons Science & Technology Select Committee Call for Evidence: Science Diplomacy – CLTR Response”. The Centre for Long-Term Resilience. https://doi.org/10.71172/zejv-rqye
