UK: Government publishes budget plans with £58.5bn for research and development

The United Kingdom's Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) has published its plans for the Research and Development (R&D) budget for 2026/2027 to 2029/2030. The budget totals £58.5 billion (€66.4 billion), and the allocation of £55.4 billion of that budget has been finalised.

An expected £38.6 billion of R&D investment for the next four financial years will fund UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), the DSIT announced on 30/10/2025. This includes funding for programmes delivered by UKRI on behalf of DSIT to support the higher education sector and industry. The yearly budget for UKRI ranges from £9.2 to £10 million and is an increase from the financial year 2025/2026 UKRI budget of £8.8 million.

Other funding will go towards UK contributions to EU programmes (£8.6 million), the UK Space Agency (£2.8 million), and the Met Office (£1.5 million).