PROFESSOR DYLAN JONES-EVANS

The most competitive economies in the World are those which invest in research and development (R&D) and focus on driving innovation. Unfortunately, as several research studies have shown, Wales does not perform well in terms of generating or developing innovation and this, in turn, impacts on the nation’s economic performance.   For example, a recent report from NESTA pointed out that Wales is one of three UK economic areas with low R&D intensity in key sectors. Official government statistics also reveal that over the last fifteen years, Welsh businesses have been responsible for only 2% of business expenditure on R&D in the UK.   The UK Innovation Survey showed that only 34% of Welsh firms were classed as innovation active in 2016-18 as compared to 38% for the UK. Businesses in Wales also  have lower levels of internal R&D than businesses in any other nation or region apart from Scotland.  This shouldn’t be too much of a surprise as Wales ...

Yesterday morning, I listened to a webinar launching a new report by the National Centre for Universities and Businesses (NCUB) which focused on how the power of research and innovation could be harnessed to develop the UK economy.  With speakers including Anne Glover (co-founder of venture capitalists Amadeus), Lord Bilamoria (President of the CBI) and Louise Richardson (Vice Chancellor of  Oxford University), the hour and half was a tour de force on how the UK can develop a policy approach that will not only help us to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic but also on how universities and businesses can work together to seize the opportunities of the fourth industrial revolution. The report itself made a series of recommendations which need to be taken seriously by the UK Government over the next few months. Not surprisingly perhaps, one of the key proposals was for the refreshment of its Industrial Strategy which, given that it was published in 2017, may not be fit for purpose...

Back in 2002, I presented a paper on the state of research and development (R&D) in Wales to the then Economic Development Committee in the National Assembly for Wales. It found a long-term trend in the low level of R&D carried out in Welsh businesses and that Welsh universities received less funding relative to the rest of the UK higher education system.  Not surprisingly, it concluded by stating that if Wales was to achieve its aim of becoming a strong knowledge-based economy, there must be increased emphasis on the development of R&D within the public and private sectors in Wales. Fast forward to 2020 and very little seems to have has changed with the latest data showing that Wales has the lowest level of private sector expenditure as a proportion of economic output of any nation or region in the UK.  In addition, Welsh universities receive a lower share of research funding per head of population than they should if this was devolved and this pattern has been co...

One of the headline promises by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in the build-up to the last general election was a pledge to double government research and development (R&D) spending to £18 billion within five years as part of a new wave of economic growth. This builds on the target by previous government’s Industrial Strategy to raise investment on R&D to 2.4 per cent of GDP by 2027.  Whilst universities will be important in reaching this target, the majority of R&D in the UK is carried out by the private sector. Given this, it is critical that businesses are given the right support and incentives to invest into R&D over time. The good news is that the latest statistics show that R&D expenditure on research and development performed by UK businesses was £25 billion in 2018, an increase of nearly six per cent on 2017. In terms of sectors, pharmaceuticals remain the industry that spends the most on R&D accounting for £4.5 billion of expenditure in 2017 (or 18% o...

It is generally accepted by economists around the world that research and development (R&D) is the foundation to the development of innovative and competitive economies. Given this, it is not surprising that one of the principles of the Welsh Government’s current “ Prosperity for Al l” strategy is to support businesses to innovate, introduce new products and services and succeed. To achieve this, it is clear that businesses need to be encouraged to invest more in R&D as this will lead to better products and services that markets will consume. One of the key indicators for assessing the innovation that takes place within the UK is the measure of research and development spending by the private sector, otherwise known as BERD. The latest statistics show us that BERD for the whole of the UK in 2017 was £23.7 billion with the three most prosperous regions – London, South East of England and the East of England – accounting for 52 per cent of this expenditure. In contrast...