The UK's newly elected Labor government will have a long list of issues to tackle after a resounding victory in yesterday's general election. Scientists hope the upheavals will bring positive changes.

With a clear majority of more than 170 seats in yesterday's vote, Labor will form the next government in the UK, ending 14 years of Conservative rule. In his first speech to 10 Downing Street, new Prime Minister Keir Starmer said his government would "rebuild Britain with prosperity from every community" to fix many of the problems in the country's public services and institutions.

“With this election result, the new Labor government under Sir Keir Starmer has a real opportunity to drive change in the UK,” Alicia Greated, chief executive of the Campaign for Science and Engineering, said in a statement. “Science, engineering and research and development are huge assets to the UK’s ability to innovate and grow economically.”

Joe Marshall, chief executive of the National Center for Universities and Business (NCUB), said his organization was “delighted to see how central research and innovation was to Labor’s manifesto” and that innovation “should be at the forefront of the government’s economic recovery plan and form the basis of its new industrial strategy”.

Money worries

One area that requires immediate attention is the funding of Britain's universities, many of which are in a precarious financial position due to a fall in international student numbers and frozen tuition fees since 2017. University finances are “one of the things that could explode in the first few months of a Labor government,” says James Wilsdon, a science policy researcher at University College London. An estimated 40% of British universities are running a deficit this year and some are at risk of insolvency, he adds.

During their time in office, the Conservatives increased visa fees and introduced stricter criteria for foreign researchers wanting to come to the UK to work or study. This has exacerbated the situation, with international applications to UK universities falling by 44% this year. “The real problem with the last 14 years of government has been that universities have been seen as evil, liberal, ‘woke’ public institutions,” says Kieron Flanagan, a science policy researcher at the University of Manchester, UK. “The Conservatives have simultaneously pursued pro-science, pro-research and anti-university policies.”

In contrast, Labor has “made it clear that they will not continue this war on universities,” says Flanagan. But he adds that the party was vague in its manifesto about how it would tackle the problem of university finances. She has a few options, including raising tuition fees, which would be "politically indigestible," says Flanagan, or increasing public spending on universities.

When it comes to general research and development funding, Labor has announced in its manifesto that it wants to “abolish short funding cycles for key research and development bodies” such as UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), “in favor of ten-year budgets”. This would be a popular move for scientists. “Science works on long time scales, so creating that certainty helps to attract private investment,” said Martin Smith, a policy expert at London-based biomedical funding group Wellcome. It is unlikely that the new government will implement this reform goal immediately, he adds. “That would be something that would be discussed in the spending review in the fall.”

New science minister

In the coming days, Starmer will put together his cabinet, which will include appointing ministers to oversee science and research. While Labor was in opposition, such positions were held by Peter Kyle, shadow minister for science, innovation and technology, and Chi Onwurah, shadow minister for industrial strategy, science and innovation. Kyle is "an influential figure who is close to Starmer and I think most people would consider it a very positive outcome if he continued in that role," says Wilsdon. Smith says Onwurah "has been in the business for a long time and is very familiar with science policy" and the science sector "would feel reassured if she had a role."

The formation of a new government may also entail changes to ministries. Scientists will be interested to see whether Labor retains the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), which the Conservative government established in February 2023. Smith says it's too early to say whether DSIT has been successful, but fundamentally the department enables "the ability to coordinate the science agenda across government."