Corporate report

DSIT research and development (R&D) allocations for 2025/2026

Published 4 April 2025

Introduction

This page outlines how the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) will allocate its £13.9 billion research and development (R&D) budget for the financial year 2025/2026.

DSIT has a central role in delivering the government’s agenda, with long-term economic growth dependent on strong innovation and R&D. Public investment in R&D generates significant benefits for the UK, with each pound of public R&D investment estimated to leverage, on average, £2 of private R&D investment in the long run.

Innovation – from R&D investment through to tech adoption in industry – is central to creating a pro-business environment. We are tilting the innovation system to better support our five national missions and the eight growth sectors of the government’s modern Industrial Strategy.

Despite inheriting an extremely difficult fiscal position and recognising the pivotal role of R&D in achieving governmental objectives, particularly on economic growth, the government is protecting record levels of R&D investment, with £20.4 billion allocated in 2025/2026. DSIT’s overall R&D budget will be £13.9 billion in 2025/2026, including funding for UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), with a breakdown in Table 1. DSIT’s allocation also fully funds Horizon Europe association, meaning that UK researchers and businesses can participate confidently in the world’s largest programme of research cooperation, worth more than £80 billion.

Other areas of investment include £184 million for the Advanced Research and Invention Agency to continue to grow and invest in high-risk, high-reward research and £66 million continued investment in the AI Security Institute to achieve its mission to equip governments with a scientific understanding of the risks posed by advanced AI.

Table 1: DSIT R&D allocation plans 2025/2026^{[footnote 1]}

Organisation or programme	2025/2026 (£ million)
UK Research & Innovation (UKRI)	8,811
UK Contribution to EU Programmes [footnote 2]	2,736
UK Space Agency	668
Met Office	310
National Academies [footnote 3]	217
Advanced Research & Invention Agency (ARIA)	184
National Measurement System	130
AI Security Institute (AISI)	66
Government Office for Science (GOS) [footnote 4]	18
Other DSIT programmes [footnote 5]	750

UKRI allocations

DSIT’s allocation to UKRI is £8.8 billion, sustaining unprecedented levels of investment in R&D. Additionally, UKRI is expected to receive funding for the Faraday Battery Challenge and the Zero Emission HGV and Infrastructure Demonstration from the Department for Business and Trade and the Department for Transport respectively, where funding was previously provided by DSIT.

UKRI will work in partnership with DSIT to invest across its actively managed portfolio of people, infrastructure, ideas, partnerships, and innovation to deliver change and set the stage for future years. UKRI will use its unique position in the research and innovation system to make smart and strategic investment choices aligned with the priorities of the new government, delivering the best outcomes now and in the future to ensure the most effective use of public money.

In 2025/2026, UKRI will strengthen the benefits that research and innovation bring to citizens around the UK by delivering priorities, including through the new R&D Missions Programme, with a particular emphasis on economic growth and high-quality public services. The change these investments will deliver will be amplified through partnerships across the research and innovation sector and wider co-investment with government and the private and third sectors.

UKRI will invest across their portfolio to kickstart sustained economic growth by developing the talent that firms need, breaking down barriers to the commercialisation of cutting-edge research, and enabling innovative businesses to start-up, scale-up, and become the global market leaders of the future.

Table 2 below sets out UKRI’s allocation to their research councils and to cross-UKRI programmes. The Councils, working individually and collectively within UKRI, have a major role in supporting the UK’s R&D ambitions and will publish their own Strategic Delivery Plans alongside UKRI’s corporate plan in Autumn 2025.

Table 2: UKRI Allocation Plans 2025/2026 ^{[footnote 6]}

	2025/2026 (£ million)
Council R&D budgets	6,013
Of which Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)	70
Of which Biotechnology & Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)	326
Of which Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)	640
Of which Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)	123
Of which Medical Research Council (MRC)	602
Of which Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)	327
Of which Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC)	618
Of which Research England (RE) [footnote 7]	2,359
Of which Innovate UK (IUK)	948
Cross UKRI R&D budgets	2,798 [footnote 8]
Of which Collective Talent	773
UKRI Total	8,811 [footnote 9]

Footnotes / disclaimers

1. Allocation numbers indicate planned budget for 2025/2026 and are rounded to the nearest million. ↩

2. This includes the United Kingdom’s contribution towards, or spending associated with, EU Programmes including Horizon Europe, Copernicus and Horizon Europe Guarantee costs. The exact annual cost in 2025/2026 is subject to change. ↩

3. Academies’ figures represent the core non-official development assistance (ODA) allocation. The Academies also receive funding from other DSIT programmes including the International Science Partnership Fund. ↩

4. The Government Office for Science is operationally independent and works across all of government. For administrative purposes it is part of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. ↩

5. The figure is rounded to the nearest £50 million. ↩

6. Allocation numbers indicate planned budget for 2025/2026 and are rounded to the nearest million. ↩

7. Research England figures are for financial year 2025/2026. Allocated budgets for academic year 2025/2026 will vary and be announced separately. Allocations hold the balance of dual support at 64p (this currently excludes ODA funding, but includes dual support for new strategic programmes). ↩

8. Cross UKRI R&D budgets include infrastructure, new and existing strategic programmes and centrally managed funding. This also includes funding for the AI Research Resource, which is a DSIT managed programme. ↩

9. This does not include the Faraday Battery Challenge and Zero Emission HGV and Infrastructure Demonstration. UKRI will now receive funding for these programmes from the Department for Business and Trade and the Department for Transport respectively. ↩