‘More ambition needed’ on UK’s R&D levelling-up mission

Report calls for specific target for fraction of public R&D spending outside greater south-east

The UK government should make its R&D levelling-up mission more ambitious and increase the share of public funding going outside of the south-east, a leading think tank has said.

In a new report, the Institute for Government argues that there is a “good case for government support for R&D, and that direct government spending can help the government’s levelling-up agenda so long as it is well-targeted at places best equipped to use it and accompanied by complementary investments”.