The UK Government is “flying blind” in its approach to innovation policy, according to a new report from parliament’s Science, Innovation and Technology Committee, and leaving untapped potential within regional innovation clusters that’s costing the wider economy.

In its report, the influential Commons Committee warned that “simply pouring money into the existing innovation ecosystem” is not enough to stimulate the growth and technological progress coveted by Labour since coming into power in 2024, with MPs highlighting “major shortfalls” in the availability and sharing of innovation data, particularly regional data. 

Without clear metrics and measurements around investment, outputs and local impact, MPs said it is “impossible” for the government and UKRI to properly evaluate existing policies, identify improvements and ensure public money is allocated in a way that drives regional growth.

The lack of a data-driven approach has left the UK unable to unleash the full potential of its regional innovation clusters, the report argues, which need sustained investment, infrastructure and skills concentration to mature, only possible through a data-led approach to policy and funding. 

However, the prioritisation of R&D spending and the government’s “unashamedly place-based” Industrial Strategy offers an opportunity to deliver this regional growth, as long as plans to publish departmental R&D spending include regional and cluster-level breakdowns.

This approach would allow the government to map, monitor, and support innovation clusters, and create a national framework for regional development that sits at the heart of the Industrial Strategy.

It could also help to highlight barriers to accessing public R&D funding that innovators often face outside traditional hotspots. To support regional innovators more effectively, the government should establish a portal matching innovators to funding, while Innovate UK should set clear targets for increasing engagement across the whole of the country. 

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“Placing innovation at the centre of the Government’s growth mission is a welcome first step to delivering much-needed economic growth,” said Dame Chi Onwurah, Chair of the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee.

“However, without the right data, how can we know whether innovation policies are working, whether public money is being directed to the right places, and how much private investment it is generating? Clear and transparent metrics are essential to track investment, outputs and outcomes.  

“The UK is flying blind when it comes to innovation policy. At a time where economic growth is urgently needed across the country and a new approach to R&D funding is being rolled out, the Government and UKRI must be guided by data to make evidence-based policy that reflects regional strengths.”