The UK Government has announced its intention to absorb the business-facing innovation agency into an umbrella organisation with the university-facing research councils. Specialist Cambridge-based consultancy Technologia works extensively in the UK’s innovation ecosystem and raised its concerns about the effects of these changes in written evidence to the Committee last month.
Dr Jeremy Klein said, “We pointed out that Innovate UK has evolved delivery mechanisms that are well suited to its customer base and to the types of project it funds. If the integration of Innovate UK with the research councils were to change the delivery mechanisms radically we thought the results would help neither set of customers.”
The Select Committee published its conclusions last week in a letter to the Minister of State for Universities and Science, Jo Johnson, MP. Technologia’s evidence was quoted in several places and it is clear that its perspective was echoed by many of the stakeholders that gave evidence, as well as members of the House of Lords.
Technologia’s Managing Director Mick McLean said, “The Committee’s letter agrees that the idea that innovation comes mainly from universities is out of date – and I was pleased to see our study of UK patenting used to support the conclusion that R&D in businesses and public sector institutes is of equal and perhaps greater importance.”
For more details please see Letter from the Earl of Selborne, Chairman of the Science and Technology Committee to Jo Johnson MP, Minister of State for Universities and Science, BIS (30 June 2016)
____________________________________________