Cambridge professor says government must invest in science

Sustained investment in science is vital to “improve the health and wealth of our nations”, a leading clinician told the BBC.

“Cambridge has more patents per capita than any other city in the country,” she said.

BBC Politics East’s Race Across the East sees the team travelling around the region to investigate key topics in the general election.

Prof Summers, who led the Cambridge team battling Covid-19 during the pandemic, said: “UK PLC relies on talent – we need the best talent to come here and do their best to improve the health and wealth of our people.”

“I think we have to make sure we’re competitive. We have to make sure that people who are as smart and talented as we need them are willing to come and work with us.”

Prof Summers, who splits his time between treating critically ill patients for the NHS and running the laboratory at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, said whichever party wins the election must provide “sustainable funding for British science”.

“You can’t build on a large scale without sustainable investment,” Prof Summers added.

“We also need systems that help us recruit and retain the best talent in the world.

“We’re successful in this business because we’re able to attract the best people to work here.

“It’s important to make sure that continues.”

She added that the UK economy needed to be a good environment for business if scientific discoveries were to have a “meaningful impact on patients and the economy”.

The party added that it would “support research into new treatments for conditions such as Parkinson’s and motor neurone disease, and secure more commercial clinical trials.”

of Labour Party Manifesto “The revolution underway in data and life sciences has the potential to transform health care in our nation.”

“The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us that a strong, mission-led industrial strategy, bringing together government, industry and academia, can turn the tide of the pandemic. This is the approach we will take in Government.”

of LDP The party said it would “support science, research and innovation, particularly in the areas of small and medium-sized enterprises, start-ups, universities, zero carbon, the environment and medical technology.”

As part of this, the party has set a goal of “investing at least 3% of GDP in research and development by 2030, rising to 3.5% by 2034.”

Green Party “I aim to increase investment in research and development by more than £30 billion over the five-year term of Parliament,” he said, adding that there would be a focus on “tackling the climate and environmental crisis”.

The party said it would encourage the UK government to partner with universities to assess which areas are most important for research and development.

Reform Britain The government said it would “abolish net zero to cut costs and restore growth”, reversing the current administration’s pledge to end greenhouse gas emissions equal to the amount we emit into the atmosphere by 2050.

Reformers claim “net zero and the removal of associated subsidies” would save £30 billion a year, and aim to focus on British oil and gas, shale and “clean nuclear energy from new small modular reactors”.