Whatever Paul Nurse had in his mind’s eye when he made his independent recommendations on the UK’s research, development and innovation organisational landscape back in March 2023, this probably wasn’t it.
The government’s response to the Nurse review, published alongside the Autumn Statement, has a lot of enthusiastic language on the coherence and sustainability of the research landscape.
Rather than forcing choices about where to focus investment to achieve national priorities, the government has opted for the whole system to be “more” – more “diverse”, more “resilient”, and more “investable”. In doing so, many of Nurse’s more specific recommendations are picked up, but his review’s core plea for a single unifying strategic direction that would in turn shape choices about priorities and funding systems for the long term, has gone unanswered.
Instead, the document styles itself as a “series of short term actions” and a “first step” towards addressing the broader challenges laid out in the Nurse review. There’s quite a lot about what’s already happening, existing strategies, and frequent reminders of the achievement of Horizon Europe affiliation. And there is the promise of more to come in the months ahead – including a national plan for R&D infrastructure, an interactive map of UK research excellence and innovation clusters, and a “sector-wide discussion” on how research organisations are funded and their financial sustainability.
