A long-term plan for science funding will be a key component of Britain's spending review for 2004, Chancellor Gordon Brown told a meeting in London on Monday (January 26).
Brown said the government aimed “to make Britain the best location for research and development and for innovation.” This is something it already encourages, he said, by spending £1.25 billion annually renewing Britain's science base, offering tax credits for research and development, and other measures.
“I can announce today… our commitment to make a long-term plan for science funding over the next decade a central feature of our 2004 spending review,” he told the Advancing Enterprise conference.
There is pressure on the government at present to keep public spending in check, something Brown acknowledged. “I have announced that while meeting all our commitments and our fiscal rules, the rate of spending growth in the next spending round will be lower than ...
