Chuka Umunna: ‘I’m not going to spell out the detail’

Does Labour have a science plan? Miriam Frankel finds the shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna unwilling to get into specifics.

Can you confirm whether a Labour government would protect the research budget?

We will be announcing the exact funding framework for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills in the chancellor’s first budget if we are elected. In office, we had a 10-year funding framework for science and we have committed to ensuring that we put in a long-term funding framework for science and innovation in the next parliament, although I’m not in a position to give exact details. We’ve been clear that all our commitments are properly funded and do not entail additional borrowing.