Liz Kendall Announces £8 Billion for Clean Energy & National Security
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UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), with direction from Science and Technology Secretary Liz Kendall and UKRI CEO Ian Chapman, will invest a record £38.6 billion over four years, beginning in 2026. This allocation includes a targeted £8 billion for research and development addressing national and societal priorities, specifically focusing on areas like clean energy, health resilience, and national security. The funding strategy, detailed in a recent explainer, prioritizes focused investment to advance knowledge, improve lives, and drive UK economic growth, with an annual investment expected to reach almost £10 billion. This outcome-focused approach represents a shift in budgetary allocation for the organization. UKRI’s Four-Year Funding Allocation: £38.6 Billion UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has detailed plans for its £38.6 billion four-year funding allocation from the government, spanning financial years 2026-2027 to 2029-2030. This record investment will be distributed across key priority areas, with £8 billion dedicated to targeted research and development in areas like clean energy, health resilience, and national security. A further £7 billion will support the growth of innovative companies, assisting with scaling and commercializing technologies. Approximately £14 billion will be allocated to curiosity-driven, foundational research, underpinning the broader UK R&D system. The remaining portion of the £38.6 billion will fund cross-cutting investments in areas such as skills and infrastructure. UKRI aims to scale research and innovation investment to almost £10 billion per year, prioritizing areas where the UK can achieve world leadership and maximize returns. This new allocation utilizes an outcome-focused approach, meaning direct comparisons to previous budgets or historical investment levels aren’t possible. Both UKRI CEO Ian Chapman and Science and Technology Secretary Liz Kendall emphasized the importance of focusing resources on fewer, high-impact areas to drive growth and benefit the UK, backing “winning ideas” and promoting scalable businesses.
Prioritized Investment Areas & Strategic Goals UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) will invest a record £38.6 billion over four years, beginning in 2026, aligning its budget with a single mission to advance knowledge, improve lives, and drive UK growth. This substantial funding will be distributed across prioritized ‘buckets’, with approximately £10 billion invested annually in research and innovation. The allocations are designed to target world-leading areas with the strongest potential return for the UK, reflecting a new outcome-focused approach. A significant portion of the funding—£8 billion—is earmarked for targeted research and development addressing national and societal priorities. This includes key areas like clean energy, health resilience, and national security. Another £7 billion will support innovative company growth, helping UK businesses scale and commercialize cutting-edge technologies. Furthermore, £14 billion will be allocated to curiosity-driven research, underpinning the overall UK R&D system. The remaining funds will be used for foundational investments, including skills and infrastructure, supporting these priority areas. Science and Technology Secretary Liz Kendall emphasized that this funding round aims to do “fewer things better” by backing winning ideas, ultimately benefiting both promising UK businesses and the public through impactful projects. It’s important to note these new allocations are not directly comparable to previous budgets due to the new approach. By doing fewer things better and backing winning ideas, this round of record UKRI funding can help more promising UK businesses to scale up while homing in on projects which have the best chance of benefiting us all.Liz Kendall Source: https://www.ukri.org/news/ukri-sets-out-how-it-will-invest-record-budget-allocation/ Tags: Quantum News As the Official Quantum Dog (or hound) by role is to dig out the latest nuggets of quantum goodness. There is so much happening right now in the field of technology, whether AI or the march of robots. But Quantum occupies a special space. Quite literally a special space. A Hilbert space infact, haha! Here I try to provide some of the news that might be considered breaking news in the Quantum Computing space. Latest Posts by Quantum News: Amazon Consolidates AI, Chip, & Quantum Efforts Under Single Leader December 18, 2025 New Method Reduces Thorium Atomic Clock Material Needs by 90% December 18, 2025 Quantum Computing Inc. CEO Huang to Lead $40M-Funded Photonics Roadmap December 18, 2025