Advanced economies like the UK will only retain their economic competitiveness in today’s rapidly globalising world by being at the forefront of the science and technologies that will create the new markets and jobs of tomorrow. And we will increasingly depend on international partnerships and collaborations to sustain these strengths as more and more countries acquire the capacity for leading edge R&D.

As part of meeting this challenge, the Government has set itself an ambitious target to raise the level of R&D expenditure across the economy from 1.9% to 2.5% of GDP by around 2014. It has massively increased public funding for research and development over the past decade, and in the 2007 Budget announced further increases for the period 2008-2011. But to reach the target, we will need a similar increase in the level of business R&D. A significant proportion of that increase will have to come from overseas and multinational companies putting new R&D investment in the UK.

The UK is well placed to rise to this challenge. We have one of the most creative and productive scientific and research communities in the world. With just 1 per cent of the world’s population, the UK receives over 12 per cent of all citations to published papers and publishes almost 13 per cent of papers with the highest impact. UK scientists claim around 10 per cent of internationally recognised scientific prizes every year. Knowledge transfer activity from universities has increased substantially, with spin-out formation, licensing income, and patent applications increasing four-fold since 1998. The quality of our skills base is cited by most R&D intensive companies as the major factor in deciding to put new R&D investment in the UK.

But the importance of science and innovation goes much wider than the economy. How effectively we respond to climate change, global terrorism, the pressure on natural resources and other challenges will depend crucially on our scientific community. Science and innovation has a direct contribution to make to most if not all of the International Strategic Priorities.

These aims cannot be achieved by any one department or publicly-funded body. The FCO works in close collaboration with the Government Office for Science (GO-Science) in the Department of Universities and Skills, UK Trade and Investment, British Council, the UK Research Councils, the Royal Society, DfID, Defra, and DoH, all of whom come together under the Global Science and Innovation Forum (GSIF). GSIF has a mandate from Government that the UK should:

• Be excellent in research;
• Be excellent in innovation;
• Use research and innovation to leverage global influence; and
• Use research and innovation to meet international development goals

GSIF published its strategy for international engagement in R&D in October 2006, and the FCO’s Science and Innovation Network has a crucial role in delivering that strategy.

The FCO’s Science and Innovation Network (SIN)

The Science and Innovation Network was established by the FCO in 2000 in response to the growing importance of science, technology and innovation for our future. There are dedicated staff in 39 missions in 24 countries and territories.

SIN is coordinated by the Science and Innovation Group in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London, in collaboration with the Government Office for Science and the Government’s Chief Scientific Adviser, Sir David King. Based in UK embassies and consulates abroad, the overseas Network works closely with other colleagues including British Council and UK Trade and Investment.

What does SIN do?

The Science and Innovation Network has four objectives:

Scientific Collaboration - facilitating scientific collaboration between UK universities and research laboratories and the world’s best public and private-sector counterparts abroad, and working to increase access to foreign funding for UK researchers.

Innovation - strengthening the UK’s innovation capacity through attracting R&D intensive international investment, helping UK companies to access and benchmark overseas technologies, and facilitating R&D partnerships and technology transfer.

Influence – using science and innovation to influence Governments and other overseas players across the range of the UK’s international strategic priorities (e.g. climate change, energy security, poverty, infectious diseases, counter-terrorism).

Policy-making – helping UK and overseas policy-makers develop best practice in science and innovation policy, and developing international frameworks in breakthrough technologies such as stem cell research.

PRIORITISATION

The field of science and innovation is vast. To choose what we do SIN uses a mix of top down and bottom up:

TOP-DOWN: SIN works to support the UK Government’s international strategic priorities, particularly those around globalisation, climate change and security. SIN therefore works closely with the Global Science and Innovation Forum and bilaterally with GSIF members, universities and industry.

BOTTOM-UP: Within this broad framework, SIN is responsible for proactively spotting opportunities to deliver for our customer base, drawing on particular strengths in host countries. SIN’s local country-based expertise is the core of the value we add to the UK’s overall Science and Innovation Strategy. SIN is regularly evaluated to ensure maximum impact.

For more information on the Science & Innovation Group or the Network, please contact:

Science and Innovation Group
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Room WH 424
King Charles Street
London SW1A 2AH

Tel: 020 7008 8291
Fax: 020 7008 8289
email: science.innovation@fco.gov.uk