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Innovation Report - Actions

Successful implementation of the Innovation Agenda will have a positive impact upon UK productivity and improve the UK's relative economic performance

Policy Commitment
The Innovation Report, "Competing in the Global Economy: the innovation challenge" was published in December 2003. It was the result of wider stakeholder consultation.

The Report set out a clear action plan, involving all key stakeholders, to improve our relative economic performance.

1. A Technology Strategy to concentrate Government funding on key technologies identified through consultation with business and other stakeholders;
2. New procurement guidelines designed to make Government a more "intelligent customer" by using it's huge £125 billion a year purchasing power to drive innovation through public procurement;
3. Tailored help for small businesses to innovate, including advice on itellectual property and design, with greater access to R&D grants, university research and public procurement opportunities;
4. Enhanced support and encouragement for women in entrepreneurial activities, by ensuring that every Region has a network of targeted women's initiatives as part of their Regioanl Plans;
5. Steps to deliver and reinforce the Skills Strategy as a major contributor to improving levels of innovation and productivity;
6. Research Councils to accelerate knowledge transfer and boost their interaction with business; and,
7. A new regional focus on innovation - with every Region to have a Science and Industry Council or equivalent; Regional Selective Assistance to be redesigned to focus on creation of sustainable, high value added jobs; Regional Companies to be given improved access to the National Science Base.

Key Messages
Innovation is the successful exploitation of new ideas. It is the key to maintaining a competitive edge in an increasingly competitive global economy and is necessary to maintain economic growth and prosperity.

Shaping the future of UK Technology
Innovation and technology are essential for the Government’s aim that the UK be a key hub in the global knowledge economy. The DTI is the focal point for driving innovation across government and encouraging industry to put innovation at the heart of all long-term economic plans. For further information visit our Technology Strategy pages   

Encouraging Research and Development
The Government has set ambitious goals in the 10 year Science and Innovation Investment Framework. 

More than doubling the science budget, the Government has ensured that the UK remains a leader in scientific excellence.

By 2007/8 the science budget will be  £3.3 billion compared to £1.3 billion in 1997/98.  This includes increasing DTI and DfES funding for research at an average annual rate of 5.8 per cent in real terms over the current spending review period.

The Government’s long-term objective is to raise knowledge intensity in the UK by increasing overall R&D spend to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2014 from its current level of around 1.9 per cent.  

This will put the UK in a position to secure a leading place among the major European countries and substantially close the gap between the UK and the USA, the best performing, innovation-driven major economy.

Driving Innovation Through Government Procurement
The DTI is driving change to ensure that the Government leads by example and harnesses Innovation to help deliver better public services, safer communities and fulfil our international and environmental commitments

New procurement guidelines will make Government a more intelligent customer by using its huge £125 billion a year purchasing power to drive innovation through public procurement and harness new technologies for public policy objectives

Creating highly skilled and high value jobs
The knowledge economy demands a more highly skilled workforce, from intermediate to the highest graduate level, and creates high value jobs. Investing in the skills and training is a shared responsibility, government and business, from which the entire economy benefits

DTI is working with its partners on the Skills Alliance. The Skills for Business network of 25 employer-led Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) has now been completed. Theses give employers a means of collectively analysing their skills needs and linking these to the main drivers of productivity.

SSCs are developing Sector Skills Agreements (SSAS) as the mechanism for collective action on the skills needs of employers. Four SSAs have been launched so far.

Regional Skills Partnerships bring together National, Sectorial and Regional priorities and provide a mechanism for determining, region by region, the priorities for economic development and skills linked to Regional Economic Strategies.

Further details on DTI's Skills Policy visit our leadership and skills pages

National Regional Partnership
The RDAs will have an enhanced role in delivering elements of the 10-year investment framework. 

The innovation and knowledge transfer work stream of the National-regional partnership project has helped build closer working relationships with colleagues in Business support, Business relations, OST, UKTI, SBS and the Energy Unit.

Regulatory Framework
DEFRA, the Environment Agency, DfT, the Cabinet Office and DTI have carried out three pilot projects looking at regulatory options in three environmental areas – eco-design of TVs, vehicle emissions, and the implementation of the Integrated Pollution Prevention & Control directive. 

On Intellectual Property, the Patent Office has published a National IP Crime Strategy that sets out organisations and resources involved in the fight against counterfeiting and piracy. The campaign is being promoted via regional road-shows and there is also a website where small businesses can register to win a free consultation with a patent and trademark specialist and find out further information.

Question and Answer

Q. What is the difference between the Innovation Report and previous work on innovation?
A. The Report approaches the issue from a demand-led, business “pull through” perspective rather than the usual emphasis on supply side solutions. For example, our technology strategy is all about business advising government on the ideas that, with a little support, could become future innovations.

Q. What are you doing to engage with business?
A. The Government can't alone meet the challenges of the innovation agenda.  We are continuing to engage with business in implementing the innovation agenda.

Q. What are you doing to join up across Government?
A. DTI Secretary of State for Trade and Industry chairs The Science and Innovation Cabinet Committee. This is the lead committee for the innovation agenda across Governemnt which drives forward the implementation of the Innovation Report and the 10 year Science and Innovatiion investment framework.

Q. You published the Innovation Report in December 2003. What progress have you made in implementing the reports conclusions?
A.  In December 2004, a one-year on review of progress with the actions highlighted by the Innovation Report was published. Future updates to the Innovation Report actions will be published as an annex to the Ten Year Science and Innovation Investment Framework Annual Report. 

Q. How does the DTI's 5-year programme fit into all of this?
A. The DTI's 5-year programme reinforces the strong message from the Innovation Report and the 10-year Science and Innovation Investment Framework that the creation of a modern knowledge driven economy requires a skilled workforce that embraces innovation, science and technology. Supported by a streamlined and flexible DTI, providing the voice of industry and innovation in Whitehall.

UK economic performance has improved, but the productivity gap between the UK and its major competitors remains large. Innovation has been identified as one of the drivers of productivity and it accounts for a significant proportion of the overall gap.

In the global economy, UK based businesses will find it increasingly difficult to be successful in labour intensive industries which use unskilled labour and compete on the basis of low cost. Success will depend on the ability to compete by producing products and services that customers want on the basis of higher levels of knowledge and skills, on quality and reliability as well as cost, thus sustaining value added.

The Innovation Report:

Assessed the UK's relative innovation performance compared to other countries;

Identified strengths and weaknesses, where market or institutional problems inhibit innovation in UK firms;

Identified and prioritises Government policies to address the problems and weaknesses; and

sets out a clear action plan, involving all the key stakeholders, to improve our relative innovation   
performance.
 
The fundamental difference between this report and previous work on innovation is that we have approached the issue from a demand-led, business”pull through” perspective rather than the usual emphasis on supply side solutions. This means that while we have a clear set of proposals and an action plan for taking them forward, we need input from business and other stakeholders to meet the innovation challenge. 

The Innovation Report and the actions resulting from it has been developed in parallel with the DTI's new business support products and will contribute to the DTI's new vision and reorientation.

Science and Innovation Committee (SI) - The Cabinet Committee on Science and Innovation (CCSI) supercedes both the Ministerial Group on Science, Innovation and the Knowledge Economy (SIKE) and the sub-committee on Science (SCI). The terms of reference for this committee are 'to determine and oversee the implementation of the Government's policies in relation to science, innovation and wealth creation'.

The DTI Secretary of State chairs the SI Cabinet Committee. Details of the Committee's role and Ministers attending can be found at the link above. 

Related Document Links
The Innovation Report is available in pdf format. Hard copies can be obtained from the publications unit order line on 0845 015 0010, URN number 03/1607.  The supporting Economic Analysis paper is also available in pdf format.