Transparency data

Council for Science and Technology: meeting summary, September 2023

Published 12 December 2023

Meeting summary: 5 and 6 September 2023

Attendees:

• Angela McLean (Chair)

• John Browne (Chair)

• Julia Black
• Muffy Calder
• Suranga Chandratillake
• Jim Hall
• Saul Klein
• Paul Newman
• Carol Propper
• Keith Ridgway
• Paul Stein (Day 1)
• Nick Stern
• Ottoline Leyser
• Alexandra Jones
• Jessica Glover (Day 1)
• Kata Escott (Day 2)
• Professor Paul Stewart

Apologies:

• Anne Johnson
• Max Lu
• Jim McDonald
• Fiona Murray
• Adrian Smith
• Brooke Rogers

Guests: 

• Professor Paul Monks, Chief Scientific Adviser, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

• Damitha Adikaari, Director for Climate Science and Energy Innovation, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
• Jonathan Hoare, Deputy Director for Governance, Delivery and Systems, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
• Dr Ilana Wisby, CEO of Oxford Quantum Circuits
• Dr Graeme Malcolm, CEO and Founder of M Squared Lasers
• Scott White, Founder and Executive Director of Strategic Initiatives at Pragmatic Semiconductor
• María Lema, Co-founder of Weaver Lab
• Andrew Williams, Deputy Director, Government Commercial Function, Cabinet Office
• Sarah Maclean, Co-Director, Skills Strategy and Engagement Directorate, Department for Education

Day 1:

1. Professor Dame Angela McLean provided an update on her priorities as Government Chief Scientific Adviser, including her attendance at the G20 Chief Scientific Advisers roundtable in India.

2. Members received an update from government observers on progress in delivering the Science and Technology Framework and the delivery of the Chancellor’s priorities for growth.

3. Members discussed current CST projects on priorities for investment to strengthen the UK’s sovereign space capability and how government can support R&D in the creative industries. Both reports are due for publication in October.

4. Professor Keith Ridgway led a discussion on the decline in UK manufacturing capability and the need for an industrial strategy. Members discussed the role of the High Value Manufacturing Catapult Centres and impact of UK manufacturing capability on the UK’s levelling up agenda and productivity.

5. Members received an update from officials in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero on implementation of CST’s advice to the Prime Minister on achieving net zero through a whole systems approach. Members offered advice on the energy implications of hyperscale data centres and agreed to support further systems thinking in government.

6. Members heard from four industry leaders on the opportunities and challenges of scaling up priority technologies in the UK. The discussion covered public sector procurement, semiconductor manufacturing, skills, UKRI funding, and international competition.

Day 2:

• 1.  Ottoline Leyser provided an update on the delivery of UKRI’s strategy and corporate business plan. Members discussed UKRI’s role in delivering the Science and Technology Framework, adopting portfolio risk management approaches, and the importance of tracking where UKRI investments have created economic and social impact.

• 2. Members discussed progress in government’s delivery of the procurement and talent and skills pillars of the Science and Technology Framework. Members agreed to provide further advice on how to address diversity and barriers to participation across STEM subjects, and challenges with procurement in the NHS.

• 3. Members discussed future advice and plans for the joint meeting with the US President’s Council for Science and Technology, scheduled to take place in March 2024.

End