R&D funding growth slows but UK government says it will stick to 2027 GDP target

Spending on research and development will go up by £5 billion – to £20billion – over the next three years, with funding for Horizon Europe and overseas aid research earmarked for the rest of the parliament.

While there’s disappointment in the science community that the chancellor did not meet his pledge of £22 billion by 2024–25, researchers are sanguine about the three-year settlement, which also provides sustained growth for core science funding through UK Research and Innovation. It is set to receive £5.9 billion by 2024–25, compared with £4.8 billion this year.