10 Feb Department for Science, Innovation and Technology

What Does It Mean?

Who’s in the team?

Secretary of State

Michelle Donelan MP has been appointed as Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology.

Donelan entered parliament in 2015 and has held a range of ministerial roles over the last three years. She entered cabinet as one of Boris Johnson’s “crisis appointees”, only to immediately resign and call for Johnson to step down. She has served as culture secretary since Rishi Sunak took over as prime minister and has been generally well regarded by her peers (for example, consistently securing net positive ratings of around 20% in Con Home cabinet ranking).

There were rumours this job was offered to the Michael Gove, widely regarded as an effective minister and an intellectual within the party. This is evidence the job is being taken seriously, with Donelan being seen as something of a rising star.

Junior Ministers

George Freeman MP has been retained as a Minister of State in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, having held the science brief in BEIS on and off since September 2021.

Similarly, Paul Scully MP has been appointed as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, having held the tech and digital brief in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

These choices mean that a degree of “institutional memory” is retained through the departmental changes and highlights that Donelan will be supported by Junior Ministers with experience of science, technology, and innovation which should help her get up to speed.

What’s the reaction?

The move has also been broadly welcomed by the medical and wider research community due to the promise of a more joined up approach. We know that senior peers have also been optimistic about the new department, emphasising the strength of Will Quince and George Freeman as co-ministers for life sciences who will give it focus and drive the agenda forwards. Their institutional knowledge will also support ‘rising star’ Michelle Donelan as the new Secretary of State.

Sir Paul Nurse described the creation of a stand-alone department as “a highly welcome move in support of the government’s ambition to secure the UK’s position as a science superpower”. UKRI noted that the move signals “the Government’s commitment to building a fully joined up research and innovation system”. The British Academy said the move “sounds a clear message about the value of research and development towards the long-term prosperity, health and security of the UK”, and the Academy of Medical Sciences noted that “placing science at the heart of Government… is an important step in realising the UK’s ambitions to become a science superpower”.

However, there are concerns that the move will not result in meaningful policy changes. Leading sector bodies, including the Academy of Medical Sciences, Russell Group, British Academy, and Sir Paul Nurse highlighted concerns around investment in R&D and uncertainty regarding Horizon Europe association.

Importantly, these departmental changes reveal the Sunak government’s view that a high-skilled, tech and research economy will be key to driving economic growth and addressing the economic stagnation of recent years. Life Sciences will continue to suffer with the division between health research on one hand, and health care on the other, but this does not represent a significant change from before, and (at least for large pharma), the structure of government now better mirrors commercial activity, with business and trade sitting separately to research activity or patient care.

Whatever the logic of these changes, in the short term, they will inevitably delay progress on key priorities, as ministers and officials negotiate the transition to new roles. Whether, six months down the line, the new structures translate into policy progress probably has more to do with political will rather than the machinery of government, but the right structures will certainly make any changes easier to progress.

You can also bet to see more photos of politicians at research facilities over the next 18 months!