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The Labour government has unveiled a record £55 billion investment in research and development (R&D), marking the largest long-term commitment to science and innovation in British history.
The announcement underscores Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s pledge to transform the UK into a “science and technology superpower” by the end of the decade.
The plan, confirmed by the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), will channel billions into Britain’s leading research agencies and innovation bodies through to 2030. It forms a central pillar of the government’s Modern Industrial Strategy, which aims to drive productivity, boost high-value jobs, and strengthen public-private partnerships in emerging technologies.
Announcing the package at IBM’s London headquarters, Science and Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said the funding was “absolutely critical to growing the economy and creating more good jobs”.
“Every pound of public investment in R&D generates twice as much from the private sector,” Kendall said. “This £55 billion commitment will fuel innovation in AI, clean energy and advanced manufacturing — and help solve some of the biggest challenges we face.”
The investment includes:
• £38 billion for UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), the national funding agency for science.
• £1.4 billion for the Met Office, supporting climate and meteorological research.
• £900 million for the UK’s national academies, including the Royal Society and Royal Academy of Engineering.
• A near-doubling of the Advanced Research and Invention Agency’s (ARIA) annual budget — from £220 million to £400 million by 2030 — to fund breakthrough technologies with commercial potential.
The initiative highlights the government’s focus on aligning public funding with private-sector innovation. Kendall’s visit to IBM emphasised collaboration between tech giants and British research institutions, including UKRI’s £210 million Hartree Centre, which partners with IBM on artificial intelligence and supercomputing projects in medicine and clean energy.
Recent DSIT research found that every £1 of public R&D spending generates £8 in wider economic benefits, from productivity gains to increased private investment.
“This is about good jobs, innovation, and better value for taxpayers,” Kendall told Business Matters. “There’s no route to above-average growth without putting tech and innovation first.”
The government said total R&D spending from DSIT will reach £58.5 billion by 2030, a cornerstone of Labour’s industrial and growth strategy. The announcement follows months of lobbying from business groups such as the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), which has urged ministers to set long-term R&D targets and lift national investment to 3.4 per cent of GDP by the end of the decade.
Louise Hellem, the CBI’s chief economist, called the new R&D package “a vital step towards crowding in private capital and ensuring Britain remains competitive in the global innovation race”.
As the government seeks to balance fiscal discipline with its ambition to boost growth, the record investment signals a decisive shift towards science-led economic renewal — one that positions research, technology, and innovation at the heart of the UK’s industrial future.
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Liz Kendall unveils record £55bn R&D investment to make Britain a science superpower

The Bank of England is preparing for a finely poised vote on interest rates next Thursday, as policymakers weigh the benefits of lower inflation against the threat of weaker economic growth following upcoming tax rises.
Markets, which only weeks ago expected no change in rates until mid-2025, have now sharply shifted expectations. Investors are betting that the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) — the Bank’s nine-member rate-setting panel — could vote narrowly in favour of a 0.25 percentage point cut, reducing the base rate to 3.75 per cent, the lowest level in nearly three years.
If approved, it would mark the Bank’s sixth cut since August 2024 and would mirror the US Federal Reserve’s recent decision to ease policy for the second consecutive meeting.
The possibility of an imminent rate reduction follows a run of softer economic data. Inflation, while still above target at 3.8 per cent, has remained below the Bank’s forecasts for three consecutive months. Services inflation — a key indicator of domestic pricing pressures — eased to 4.7 per cent in September, under the MPC’s 5 per cent forecast.
Food price growth has slowed to 4.5 per cent, while private sector wage growth has moderated to 4.4 per cent. Unemployment, meanwhile, has risen to a four-year high of 4.8 per cent, signalling slack in the labour market.
Yields on UK government bonds have fallen to their lowest levels this year as traders increasingly anticipate a rate cut before year-end. “Fears of entrenched inflationary pressures have given way to concerns about faster labour market cooling and overly restrictive monetary policy,” analysts at BNP Paribas noted.
Investment banks are split over whether the MPC will act this month or wait for clearer fiscal signals. Goldman Sachs and Nomura forecast a narrow vote in favour of a cut next Thursday, while Deutsche Bank believes the committee will err on the side of caution and hold rates steady.
Sanjay Raja, Deutsche Bank’s chief UK economist, said the MPC is “finely balanced” but may decide to delay action until after the chancellor’s budget. Rachel Reeves is expected to announce tax increases of up to £40 billion, a move analysts warn could dampen economic growth and strengthen the case for monetary easing later in the year.
Investec’s economists urged restraint, suggesting the MPC should “wait for another batch of inflation data” before acting. However, Goldman Sachs argued the Bank should move pre-emptively to offset the “contractionary impulse” expected from the forthcoming fiscal tightening.
Alongside next week’s rate decision, the Bank will release updated forecasts for growth, inflation, unemployment and productivity. These will be closely watched amid reports that the Office for Budget Responsibility plans to downgrade its own productivity outlook, potentially leaving a £20 billion hole in the chancellor’s fiscal plans.
Analysts at Pantheon Macroeconomics said that a significant income tax rise could “tip the [Bank] towards cutting in December and again in the spring” as the dual effects of higher taxes and slowing inflation take hold.
The finely balanced decision places the UK at a crossroads: whether to move in step with the US Federal Reserve’s easing cycle or to pause until the full impact of the budget becomes clear. Either way, next week’s vote will be one of the most closely watched in years — setting the tone for monetary policy well into 2025.
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Bank of England faces knife-edge decision on rate cut as inflation eases but growth risks mount

Britain’s factories are set to benefit from hundreds of millions of pounds in savings after the government announced sweeping cuts to industrial energy costs in a bid to stem a wave of closures across the manufacturing sector.
Peter Kyle, the Business Secretary, confirmed that from next year energy-intensive industries such as steel, glass and ceramics will receive a 90 per cent discount on electricity network charges — up from the current 60 per cent. The move is expected to save around 500 firms as much as £420 million a year.
The announcement follows mounting pressure on ministers to tackle Britain’s sky-high industrial electricity prices, which remain among the highest in the developed world and have been blamed for a series of recent factory shutdowns.
Despite the scale of the relief, business groups voiced frustration that the measures will not be applied retrospectively to April 2024. It is understood that Mr Kyle had pushed for the scheme to be backdated but was overruled by energy secretary Ed Miliband after weeks of internal wrangling.
The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has also faced criticism for delays to the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS) — a long-awaited programme designed to cut energy costs by up to a quarter for more than 7,000 firms from 2027 by removing certain net zero levies from bills. A consultation on the plan has yet to begin, leaving manufacturers uncertain about the timeline for further relief.
Mr Kyle said the new discounts would be funded through departmental efficiency savings rather than additional customer charges or new industry levies. He described the reforms as a vital step towards levelling the playing field for British exporters competing with European rivals.
“These measures will help businesses grow and invest with confidence,” he said, promising additional support for energy users “in the not too distant future”. He declined to confirm whether further help will be included in Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s Budget on 26 November, but signalled that the government’s pro-growth agenda would include more energy and regulatory reforms.
The Business Secretary also pledged to “get the balance right” in the forthcoming employment rights bill after the House of Lords approved amendments expanding union powers and introducing “day one” workplace rights.
Kyle said his department would launch 27 new consultations, stressing that “consultation means I will listen. It means I will act — in a way that is pro-growth and fit for the modern age we live in.”
He hinted at a broader deregulation and planning reform push, saying: “We’re going to carry on with the same kind of zeal and urgency into the future.”
Louise Hellem, lead economist at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), welcomed the announcement, describing it as “an important step in bringing UK industrial energy costs closer in line with European competitors”.
However, she warned that more needs to be done to reduce energy cost pressures across the wider economy. “As firms urgently await the BICS consultation, the upcoming autumn Budget presents a vital opportunity to introduce targeted measures that help more businesses cut energy use and electrify their processes,” she said.
The reforms mark a key test for Labour’s industrial strategy as it seeks to balance fiscal discipline, competitiveness and green transition goals — all while reviving confidence in Britain’s manufacturing heartlands.
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Labour to slash electricity charges for UK factories amid industrial shutdown fears

More than 100 business and charity leaders have signed an open letter calling on ministers to “lead the country’s transition toward a shorter working week”, amid a growing row over the future of the four-day week in local government.
The letter, coordinated by the 4 Day Week Foundation, comes after Steve Reed, the local government secretary, criticised South Cambridgeshire District Council — the first in England to trial a four-day working week — claiming the move had harmed performance and value for money.
In a letter leaked to The Telegraph, Reed expressed his “deep disappointment” at the council’s decision to make its four-day trial permanent. Citing an independent report, he said performance had “declined in key housing-related services including rent collection, reletting times and tenant satisfaction with repairs”.
In response, more than 100 senior figures from across business, charities and trade unions have urged the government to establish a working time council to oversee and guide a nationwide shift towards a four-day week.
“As business leaders, trade union leaders and advocates who have witnessed the successful transition to a four-day working week (with no loss of pay) in many contexts, we can say with confidence that it is not just an idea for the future – it is already delivering results today,” the letter states.
“From different sectors and company sizes, we have all witnessed the same outcome: shorter working weeks are not only viable, but transformative.”
Signatories include employers who have already adopted reduced-hour working patterns and report benefits in productivity, staff wellbeing, and retention.
Bridget Smith, leader of South Cambridgeshire District Council, rejected Reed’s claims, insisting that “independently assessed data” showed the vast majority of council services had improved or remained stable during the trial.
“I am extremely disappointed by Mr Reed’s letter,” she said. “Our staff have done 100% of their work in 32 hours each week since the four-day week began. Our financial analysis indicates that we are saving around £399,000 per year, largely by cutting our reliance on agency staff.”
The trial, which began in 2023, has been closely watched across the public sector. At least 25 other councils are understood to be exploring similar pilots for next year.
Joe Ryle, director of the 4 Day Week Foundation, described Reed’s intervention as “frankly ridiculous” and said it made the government look “outdated and stuck in the past.”
“The evidence shows that four-day weeks and flexible working are good for workers and for businesses,” he said. “The council overall is outperforming other local authorities — so cherry-picking a few metrics is frustrating and disingenuous.”
Ryle added that while the private sector has embraced shorter weeks “with hundreds of companies now operating successfully on that model,” the idea becomes “politicised as soon as it enters the public sector.”
The UK government has no legal power to ban councils from adopting four-day work patterns, but ministers can exert political pressure.
According to Office for National Statistics data, more than 200,000 workers have switched to a four-day week since the pandemic. The 4 Day Week Foundation estimates that at least 430 companies, representing 13,000 workers, have now adopted shorter working weeks nationwide.
Advocates say the model improves productivity, work-life balance and recruitment, while critics warn it risks inefficiency and disruption in essential public services.
For now, the debate over the four-day week appears set to intensify — with councils, campaigners and businesses urging ministers not to stand in the way of what they see as an inevitable shift in how Britain works.
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Business and charity leaders urge ministers to back England’s transition to four-day week

Virgin Media O2 is set to become the first UK mobile network to offer customers automatic satellite connectivity in areas with no phone signal, after striking a deal with Elon Musk’s Starlink.
The new service, O2 Satellite, will launch in the first half of 2026, giving users coverage in rural and remote regions where terrestrial masts are unavailable. The company said smartphones compatible with the technology would automatically connect to satellites when no mobile signal is detected.
While Virgin Media O2 has yet to reveal pricing, the service will be offered as an optional monthly add-on rather than a standard feature.
Initially, O2 Satellite will only support messaging, maps and location apps. Phone calls made via normal mobile networks will not work over the satellite connection, as Starlink’s current generation of satellites does not support voice. However, WhatsApp calls and other data-based communication apps may function, with O2 confirming it will run trials before the public rollout.
Luke Pearce, a telecoms analyst at CCS Insight, said the technology could prove transformative for consumers and businesses.
“In today’s world, connectivity is no longer optional,” he said. “Whether it’s emergency SOS in life-saving situations or keeping software-defined vehicles online, people now expect constant access. Satellite is the only technology that can truly close the coverage gap across mountains, oceans and rural areas.”
O2’s announcement follows rival Vodafone’s successful live video call via satellite earlier this year from a remote mountain in Wales, which the company described as a UK first. Vodafone partnered with US satellite firm AST SpaceMobile, which currently has six satellites in orbit and aims to deploy up to 60 by the end of 2026.
Starlink, owned by SpaceX, already has more than 650 satellites supporting direct-to-device services and has launched similar offerings in Australia, New Zealand, the US, Canada and Japan.
In the UK, the telecoms regulator Ofcom updated its rules in September to allow satellite connectivity directly to smartphones. For now, such connections are limited to emergency texting features available on the latest iPhone and Android models, but O2’s partnership with Starlink is expected to be the first commercial deployment for mainstream users.
Astronomers, however, have raised concerns about the growing number of low-Earth orbit satellites, warning they contribute to light pollution and could make it harder to detect asteroids and other space hazards.
Still, with O2’s move, the UK looks set to take a major step toward universal mobile coverage — powered not by masts on the ground, but by “phone towers in the sky.”
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Virgin Media O2 to team up with Musk’s Starlink to launch UK’s first satellite-connected mobile service

Apple’s iPhone, Amazon and Virgin Atlantic have been named YouGov’s UK Advertisers of the Month for September, after each brand saw a sharp increase in consumer awareness of their advertising.
According to YouGov BrandIndex, which measures the percentage of consumers who have seen an advert for a brand in the past two weeks, all three brands posted significant gains in Ad Awareness during the month.
Amazon recorded the biggest uplift, rising from 26.5% on September 1 to 33.7% on September 25 — a gain of 7.2 percentage points. The surge followed the company’s UK Upfront event, which promoted new advertising formats across Prime Video and its growing retail media network.
The e-commerce giant also announced a landmark partnership with Netflix on September 10, allowing advertisers to buy inventory from Netflix’s ad-supported tier directly through Amazon’s demand-side platform (DSP). The tie-up marked a major step in Amazon’s ambitions to become a global hub for connected TV advertising.
Apple’s Ad Awareness score for iPhone jumped from 12.0% on September 9 to 21.5% on September 25, an increase of 9.5 points. The rise coincided with the company’s annual September product showcase, which unveiled the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and the new iPhone Air, alongside updates to the Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch Ultra 3, and refreshed AirPods Pro.
The high-profile launch generated extensive cross-channel marketing activity, bolstered by cinematic advertising campaigns and sustained media coverage across the tech and lifestyle sectors.
Virgin Atlantic also saw a notable uplift in Ad Awareness, climbing from 7.9% on August 30 to 13.1% on September 25 — a rise of 5.1 points. The growth was driven by the airline’s latest LGBTQ+ campaign, “Free to Be Me”, created in partnership with Attitude magazine.
The campaign celebrated inclusion and self-expression among travellers, combining digital storytelling with branded content and social partnerships to reinforce Virgin Atlantic’s positioning as one of the most progressive brands in aviation.
Together, the three brands exemplified how major product launches, partnerships, and purpose-led campaigns can translate into tangible boosts in advertising visibility — even in a competitive and cluttered media landscape.
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iPhone, Amazon and Virgin Atlantic named UK advertisers of the month for September

The Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation (FPA2) has partnered with Circulate Capital, a leading circular economy investment firm, to scale solutions addressing ocean plastic pollution across South and Southeast Asia.
The collaboration, announced at the Ocean Innovators Platform in Hong Kong — an initiative led by FPA2 to promote sustainable blue economy solutions — marks a significant step in mobilising private capital to fight plastic pollution at its source.
The partnership will combine FPA2’s global environmental influence with Circulate Capital’s investment expertise in circular economy ventures to accelerate funding for businesses that prevent plastic leakage and build sustainable value chains in coastal regions.
“The fight against ocean plastic pollution is one of the Foundation’s highest priorities,” said Olivier Wenden, Vice Chairman and CEO of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation. “Circulate Capital has demonstrated a compelling, market-based approach to solving this crisis in the regions most affected. Our partnership marks an important step in scaling effective, on-the-ground initiatives that protect marine ecosystems and support local livelihoods.”
South and Southeast Asia are responsible for nearly 70% of the plastic entering the world’s oceans each year. Yet, according to the Foundation, the region received just 10% of the US$190 billion invested globally in plastic circularity between 2018 and 2023.
Analysts estimate that improving recycling systems and managing mismanaged plastic waste across the region could reduce greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to shutting down 61 coal plants for a year. Meeting national recycling targets in six key markets could cut global emissions from plastics end-of-life by 10% by 2030.
“We aren’t just getting a partner; we’re getting a champion,” said Rob Kaplan, Founder and CEO of Circulate Capital. “With the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation alongside us, we can unlock the networks, capital, and collaboration needed to tackle plastic pollution head-on.”
Since its launch, Circulate Capital has invested in 23 companies across Asia and Latin America, financing projects that reduce plastic pollution while creating social and climate impact.
The firm’s portfolio has added 455,000 tonnes of annual recycling capacity, avoided 627,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions, and improved the livelihoods of more than 6,600 workers throughout the recycling value chain.
The new partnership aims to extend that reach further, channelling more capital to local innovators tackling waste collection, recycling infrastructure, and alternative materials.
The alliance underscores a growing movement to align environmental philanthropy with market-driven investment strategies. By connecting impact investors with scalable solutions, FPA2 and Circulate Capital hope to redefine how plastic pollution is tackled — turning waste into opportunity and sustainability into growth.
“This partnership exemplifies how collaboration between foundations and private capital can deliver measurable, lasting change,” Wenden said. “The ocean connects us all — and protecting it demands that kind of shared responsibility.”
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Prince Albert II Foundation and Circulate Capital join forces to tackle ocean plastic in Asia

AI and Web3 startup PoobahAI has raised $2 million in seed funding from FourTwoAlpha Ltd, the early Ethereum and Cosmos investor, in a move designed to make AI-powered blockchain creation accessible to anyone, regardless of technical expertise.
Based in Fort Worth, PoobahAI has built an artificial intelligence-driven, no-code platform that allows creators, entrepreneurs and businesses to launch decentralized Web3 applications, tokenized ecosystems and autonomous AI agents without writing a single line of code. The new capital will be used to accelerate the rollout of its flagship product, the MCP Server, and to support go-to-market expansion as the company works through a 4,000-strong global waitlist spanning North America, Europe and Asia.
The MCP Server, unveiled ahead of the funding announcement, is the first infrastructure layer designed to connect AI agents directly to blockchains. The technology allows for seamless multi-chain operations, transforming traditional static networks into dynamic, self-sustaining ecosystems capable of adapting and evolving in real time. By pairing this with PoobahAI’s intuitive platform, the company says builders can develop decentralized systems up to 60 per cent faster and at 90 per cent lower cost than traditional methods.
“Web3 holds the keys to a truly open internet, yet it’s trapped in a cage of code and complexity,” said Dr. Dana Love, President and Chairman of PoobahAI. “We’re blasting those doors wide open, arming builders with AI that doesn’t just automate — it innovates. Backed by FourTwoAlpha, we’re turbocharging this revolution and proving that the future of decentralized infrastructure can be as intuitive as drag-and-drop and as powerful as the blockchain itself.”
Founded by a team of AI and Web3 veterans, PoobahAI is part of a new generation of companies working to democratize the intersection of artificial intelligence and decentralized technology. The startup’s mission is to remove the complexity that has long hindered adoption, creating what it calls a “creator economy for Web3” — a space where individuals and organizations can build tokenized, autonomous systems as easily as they might design a website.
Investor FourTwoAlpha Ltd, based in the British Virgin Islands, said it views PoobahAI’s technology as the next logical step in the evolution of decentralized systems. The firm’s portfolio includes early investments in some of the world’s most transformative blockchain networks, and it believes PoobahAI’s AI-native approach could help unlock mainstream adoption of decentralized infrastructure.
The funding will also fuel PoobahAI’s efforts to expand its community of builders through university partnerships and global developer initiatives, as well as deepen its collaborations with major blockchain ecosystems. The company is already piloting its “chain-licensing” model with several leading Layer 1 networks, aiming to embed its AI infrastructure at the heart of the decentralized internet.
With additional AI tools entering public beta later this year, PoobahAI is positioning itself as a bridge between the AI and blockchain worlds — a convergence that many industry observers see as the next major frontier in tech innovation. “The next wave of progress will come from those who don’t just use AI or blockchain but combine them,” said Dr. Love. “PoobahAI is here to make that fusion simple, scalable and unstoppable.”
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PoobahAI raises $2M to mainstream AI-built blockchains

Sophisticated criminal networks are dumping millions of tonnes of waste in the British countryside every year, costing the UK an estimated £1 billion annually, according to a House of Lords inquiry.
The Environment and Climate Change Committee found that large-scale fly-tipping operations are increasingly linked to organised crime groups involved in money laundering, drug trafficking and modern slavery.
The inquiry estimated that around 38 million tonnes of waste are illegally dumped each year — enough to fill Wembley Stadium 35 times — but warned that the true figure may be far higher due to widespread under-reporting.
Committee chair Baroness Sheehan said waste crime had become a “low-risk, high-reward” activity for organised criminals, who operate with “complete impunity” amid weak enforcement and limited resources at the Environment Agency.
One of the worst cases cited in the inquiry involved 15ft-high piles of waste dumped in a Kent woodland, home to endangered nightingales. Despite public reports dating back to 2020, it took four years for regulators to take action.
Residents told peers they feared reprisals for speaking out. Les Bashford, a gamekeeper on the Surrey-Kent border who faces fly-tipping “almost weekly”, said confronting offenders often leads to violence.
“At least 75 per cent of people dumping here are known to the police,” he said. “If you catch them and they’ve already tipped, they’ll do whatever they can to escape.”
The Lords inquiry concluded that the £1bn annual cost of waste crime combines both the public cost of cleaning up sites and the tax revenue lost through unpaid landfill levies and unlicensed disposal operations.
Legitimate waste firms are also losing millions to criminal competitors undercutting them with illegal dumping, the committee said.
Dan Cooke, of the Chartered Institute of Waste Managers, called for tougher enforcement and more consistent national leadership.
“The negative impact this crime imposes on legitimate operators and local economies, alongside the environmental damage it causes, means tackling waste crime must become a government priority,” he said.
Peers urged ministers to launch a dedicated waste crime hotline, a digital tracking system to monitor waste from origin to disposal, and quarterly targets and progress reports for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).
The committee also recommended a review into whether the landfill tax system was inadvertently fuelling illegal dumping by making lawful disposal prohibitively expensive.
Baroness Sheehan said: “Waste crime is critically under-prioritised despite its significant environmental, economic and social costs. The government must act now — there is no time to waste.”
A Defra spokesperson said the government was already “tightening the net” on waste gangs as part of its Plan for Change.
“We are helping councils to crush fly-tippers’ vans, funding more Environment Agency enforcement officers, and imposing tougher sentences for those who transport waste illegally,” the spokesperson said. “We will carefully consider the recommendations of this report and respond in due course.”
The Lords’ findings add to growing concern about the UK’s waste system, where gaps in enforcement have allowed criminals to profit from illegal dumping while damaging the environment and local communities.
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Organised crime gangs dumping millions of tonnes of waste in British countryside