Bridging the gap on UK infrastructure
The Blueprint | No. 05.2025
Welcome to The Blueprint, our monthly roundup of science and technology. Written and edited by Dr Mann Virdee.
Thoughts from your correspondent on recent developments in science and tech in the United Kingdom (UK)
Here’s a thought: imagine it’s 2002. John Spellar, Minister for Transport, has just announced upgrades to the trans-Pennine A66 road between Scotch Corner and Penrith. Under these plans, single-carriageway sections of road will be upgraded to dual carriageway. It seems like an obvious and sensible way to make such an important – but dangerous – road safer, while also reducing congestion and improving connectivity in the region.
Then jump forwards 14 years. You expect to see those upgrades completed, right? Instead, you’re surprised to hear Theresa May’s government announce in the 2016 Autumn Statement that they are about to go ahead with the dualling of the A66.
And now we come to 2025. It’s nearly another decade later – but this time you will perhaps not be surprised to learn that the fate of the A66 dualling is still uncertain, even though the road is deemed to be a ‘vital artery’.
The point is this: making announcements about improving connectivity, upgrading infrastructure and fostering prosperity is easy; delivering is hard.
If you need another example, look at HS2. The project has been scaled back again and again, reducing it to a mere shadow of the original intention (which was fairly modest to begin with). It was originally supposed to be operational by 2026 – but we recently learnt that the opening of the little remaining section of HS2 will be delayed to some point beyond 2033. We also learnt in the Spending Review that the Department for Transport’s budget will be cut by 5% in real terms.
Sometimes it’s hard not to be pessimistic about British infrastructure.
But, amid all the bad news, there are some areas which should provide hope. We recently saw Rachel Reeves, Chancellor of the Exchequer, make some positive announcements in the Spending Review. His Majesty’s (HM) Government has allocated £14.2 billion to build the Sizewell C nuclear power station, alongside £2.5 billion for a small modular reactor (SMR) programme. This comes alongside the news that Rolls-Royce SMR has won the Great British Nuclear competition to build the first SMRs in the United Kingdom (UK). Ed Miliband, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, called this ‘the biggest expansion of new nuclear power in over half a century’.
We also heard from Jensen Huang, CEO of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) computing giant Nvidia. Speaking alongside Sir Keir Starmer, Prime Minister, and Poppy Gustafsson, Investment Minister, he said: ‘I think [the UK is] just such an incredible, incredible place to invest. I’m going to invest here’. He argued that Britain’s ecosystem is perfect for takeoff; it’s just missing one thing – it lacks homegrown, sovereign UK AI infrastructure. Back in January, HM Government set out a comprehensive strategy – the AI Opportunities Action Plan – which seeks to address that.
And last week, we saw the unveiling of the 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy. It offers a roadmap for how affordable housing, roads and railway lines will be improved.
Over the next decade, some £725 billion is set to be committed by HM Government to help deliver key economic and social infrastructure projects. It is hoped that the funding will provide certainty for government and industry to plan ahead, including dedicated support for the delivery of over 500,000 new homes and investment of around £1 billion to maintain collapsed roads. The Strategy also includes welcome commitments to the clean energy sector and digital connectivity through Project Gigabit.
These plans are all commendable. But, time and again, we have seen that the problem lies not in setting out good intentions, but in delivering. Voters are rightly wary of bold promises, and will judge the government based on actions, not words. Time is running out for HM Government to make good on its promises.
Technological innovations, developments and stories you might have missed
World’s first commercial small modular reactor ready to power half a million homes in China
The People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) Linglong-1 – the world’s first commercial small modular nuclear reactor – is now in its final installation phase. It is expected to provide power to 526,000 homes.
Plans to build major power plant in Wales
Westinghouse, the United States (US) energy giant, has presented plans for two large nuclear reactors on the Isle of Anglesey, Wales. HM Government is currently considering whether there should be mini nuclear plants there instead.
The first bacteria we ever encounter can keep us out of hospital
Exposure to certain types of bacteria in the hours after birth could help protect against infections later in childhood, according to a new study by University College London (UCL) and the Wellcome Sanger Institute. It is the first study to show how the formation of the microbiome affects the risk of infection.
First measurements made in mission to unlock secrets of the universe
Researchers have just carried out the world’s most precise measurement of the ‘muon magnetic anomaly’. This is a way to test the Standard Model in physics, which describes how the universe works at the most fundamental level – and which forces and particles exist.
China’s new 6G system unlocks unprecedented jamming and communications capabilities
A new 6G weapons project from the Huazhong University of Science and Technology claims to be able to jam US F-35 Joint Combat Aircraft.
QS World University Rankings 2026
There are huge problems with trying to rank universities, so always treat lists like this with a healthy dose of scepticism. Having said that, it’s worth having a quick glance at the newly published QS World University Rankings 2026. Four UK universities make the top ten universities in the world: Imperial College London (#2), Oxford (#4), Cambridge (#6) and UCL (#9). The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) takes the #1 spot for the 14th year in a row.
German state ditches Microsoft for open-source
The German state of Schleswig-Holstein has announced that it will phase out all Microsoft software from government workplaces, and instead transition to Linux and open-source programs in the next three months. It will affect approximately 30,000 employees – civil servants, police officers and judges. It is a step towards ‘digital sovereignty’, and a part of growing European resistance to reliance on US tech giants. This comes on the heels of Denmark making a similar move.
Your reading list on science and technology
Building energy grids is slower and more expensive than ever before in British history
Arthur Downing
Building energy grids in Britain has become slower and more expensive. This is a result of the increased quality and complexity of modern grids, low productivity in construction, the decline of domestic supply chains and a regulatory model which may inflate costs.
15 thoughts on what the Spending Review means for British Nuclear
Sam Dumitriu
Some reflections on the Spending Review and what it means for nuclear from Britain Remade’s Sam Dumitriu.
SCOUT – British infrastructure and planning data
Centre for British Progress
Not an article as such, but rather a great new tool to see planning data on a map of the UK, such as on the Green Belt or power lines. It is an innovative way to see the challenges facing housing and planning – an area we’ve frequently highlighted at the Council on Geostrategy.
Revealing quotes
‘I think [the UK] just such an incredible, incredible place to invest. I’m going to invest here’. – Jensen Huang, CEO, Nvidia Corporation
The CEO of the AI computing giant Nvidia was speaking alongside the Prime Minister and Investment Minister. He said that Britain has one of the richest AI communities anywhere on the planet, together with amazing startups such as DeepMind, Wayve, Synthesia and ElevenLabs. He added that the UK’s ecosystem is perfect for takeoff; it’s just missing one thing – it lacks homegrown, sovereign UK AI infrastructure.
‘This represents a new golden age for nuclear’. – Ed Miliband, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
Writing in The Telegraph, Miliband said that ‘New nuclear is a crucial source of firm, baseload power’. He argued that HM Government’s announcements amounted to ‘the biggest expansion of new nuclear power in over half a century’.
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