Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the Levelling Up White Paper’s commitment to fund Research and Development Hot Spots across the country, what plans his Department has to promote research and development in the London Borough of Havering.

The success of London strengthens our national research and development (R&D) ecosystem, benefitting all UK regions. To this end, the Government is fully committed to the continued success of London’s world-class centres of R&D excellence.

The 2021 Spending Review sees record levels of investment in the UK’s world-leading research base with public spending on R&D increasing by £5 billion per annum to £20 billion in 2024-25.

The substantial uplift to research and science funding will not only allow the UK to build on our existing strengths but will also provide opportunities to grow research and innovation investment across the entire country.

Public R&D funding will continue to be awarded competitively and will be open to universities, businesses and organisations across the whole UK.