Gary Elliott • 01.07.20 •  2 mins

Today’s announcement from the Government of a new R&D roadmap, as well as a £300m investment in research infrastructure, is welcome news.

The ATI strongly supports the commitment to increase Government spending on R&D to £22bn a year by 2024/25, and we stand ready with our partners in the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) to play our role in ensuring that UK aerospace benefits from that.

We have seen the clear benefits of investing in research, and we know that Government funding for R&D leverages the contribution made by the private sector; every £1 of public investment in R&D helps to secure a further £12 of private investment.

The ATI Programme, a joint commitment of Government and industry to invest £3.9bn in civil aerospace R&D out to 2026, is expected to deliver a return of £114bn in value add and spillovers. With a longer-term remit and an uplift in funding, we could deliver even more.

Our own analysis shows that Government support for R&D programmes is critical in keeping the UK at the frontier of innovation. This is particularly effective when it addresses sector-specific challenges – such as the pressing need to decarbonise aviation. We see the development of technologies for sustainable aviation to be a critical element of aerospace R&D in the UK over the coming years, and through the ATI Programme we will seek to ramp up the research into zero-emission aircraft with Government support.

The monthly submissions to the ATI Programme show the continuing commitment from industry to lead R&D programmes that benefit the whole of the UK. And it is the whole of the UK. Projects in the ATI Programme are being undertaken in every region; over 300 projects involving 338 UK organisations, of which 208 are SMEs, and the potential to create and sustain up to 68,000 jobs. This is a truly national effort.

Number 10 is right to be ambitious with its support for science and innovation. We look forward to working with our key partners and stakeholders to build on that ambition, deliver research programmes at speed and scale, and maintain UK aerospace’s competitive lead in the global market.