Memorandum 7
Submission from Amicus
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Amicus would make the following recommendations:
(a) For the Treasury to reverse the cuts
of 2005 and get back to a level of investment of £20 million
plus per year for the Space sector, investing in projects that
add value. ARTES is particularly vulnerable as it is outside the
OSI.
(b) That the UK government acknowledge the
importance of the Space industry in creating jobs, new companies,
innovative research and development and the full benefit to the
wider population of these innovations.
(c) That the UK government support a new
national space innovation fund of £1 million per BNSC partner,
this would then create an annual fund of £10 million per
year.
(d) Increase funds to the European Space
Agency (ESA) by £15 million per year to sustain the UK's
lead role in the Galileo and Global Monitoring for Environment
and Security (GMES) projects.
(e) Support a Prime Ministerial review into
the UK Space industry.
(f) Encourage further educational achievement
and interest around space, science and technology by creating
further initiatives and offering further funding to projects such
as the Scottish Space School; which reached 25,000 schoolchildren,
of which 83%[23]
went on to take science courses at a higher level, and the Yorkshire
Regional Development Agency who have invested £1 million
in a new Space Education Office for the UK.
(g) That the UK government encourage companies
to develop and use innovation to address the challenges thrown
up by modernity.
(h) For education policy in the UK to actively
encourage students to train for and take up careers in space,
science and engineering, via bursaries, financial inducements
and a re-direction of education funding and progressive marketing
of the sector. This would further the UK's standing in the world
as a centre of excellence for research and design and ensure that
the most highly skilled workforce in UK manufacturing is retained
and built upon.
(i) To be build on the lead that the UK has
developed in the global market for low-cost satellites and the
global mobile satellite communication market to secure the creation
of wealth for the UK economy and the creation of further jobs
for the UK workforce. Without the initial investment from government
into space related projects this lead would not have happened.
(j) For UK Trade and Industry (UKTI) to prioritise
a marketing strategy for the UK space industry, whereby the countries
in the global market come to the UK first to see what we have
to offer, thereby making UK plc even more profitable and successful;
creating the opportunity for job creation that the highly skilled
UK workforce will be able to encompass and achieve.
1. There are currently 115,000[24]
people employed in the Aerospace and Shipbuilding sector. Of these
Amicus represents 63,000 workers. The significant employers within
the Aerospace sector are Thales and BAE Systems. The UK has a
thriving Space industry that employs over 16,000 people and has
an annual turnover of £4.8 billion[25]
the key employer here is Astrium, part of the European company
EADS. The Space sector offers a diverse range of expertise including
the manufacture of satellites, scientific instrumentation, battery
technologies, software development and data analysis systems.
2. There are two key strategic industrial
areas within the sector, "upstream" representing the
provision of technology and "downstream" representing
the exploitation of technology. The downstream sector dominates
the overall industry turnover with a figure of £4.1 billion[26]
and the upstream generated a turnover of £725 million, representing
a 34% increase between 2003 and 2005[27].
3. The UK space industry has participated
in many key missions to explore the solar system, including Giotto,
Rosetta, Cassini, Mars Express and Beagle 2. UK companies have
also participated in industrial studies for the robotic missions
in the European Space Agency's Aurora Programme to explore Mars.
UK companies are world leaders in the development of micro-satellites
that provide low cost access to space for the public and private
sectors. The UK also builds some of the largest and most powerful
satellites in commercial use and is at the forefront of the satellite
communications industry.
4. To enable the facilitation of this programme
of innovation, development and research the workers within these
companies are of the highest calibre, and have an enhanced level
of education and training. At least 57%[28]
of employees in the space industry have at least a first degree.
However, in a report commissioned by the British National Space
Centre (BNSC) a high number of companies in the sector reported
a shortage of specific skills, these ranged from engineering disciplines
to physics degrees.
5. Space industry employers are concentrated
in the South East and Eastern regions for the upstream sector
(90%) with London being the main location for downstream employers
(82%).[29]
The sector has one of the highest added values in the UK; this
measure of productivity has increased over the past two years
and now represents £137,000[30]
per worker. This is four times the national average in the UK
manufacturing sector. The sector also has increasingly high levels
of research and development (R & D) investment. £300
million was invested in R & D last year, with a 10% growth
in the last five years, growth that is four times faster than
the UK economy is growing. It is anticipated that the global market
will be worth £1 trillion by 2020.[31]
6. There are clear issues relating to Amicus
members in relation to the present government's approach to the
continued investment and support of the Space industry. The budget
cuts by the DTI in December 2005 for the ARTES technology project,
and the proposed cuts to the UK funding of the Galileo project
meant there was an immediate threat to 400-500 jobs in the UK
Space industry. With the capitulation of the cuts to the funding
of Galileo this threat to jobs has been lessened slightly but
there are still major concerns within the industry that the UK
government does not recognise, nor accept the crucial role the
Space sector has in the creation of jobs, wealth and highly skilled
workers in the UK. We cannot leave the Space industry to our European
neighbours, as Francois Auque (CEO for EADS) said "...if
there is no change in this downshift in the UK, then there will
be a shift to other countries, there are almost 500 UK jobs at
risk here".
7. This however is only the tip of the iceberg
where loss of jobs is concerned. Cuts to Galileo could mean 20,000
jobs cut in downstream markets, Global Monitoring for Environment
and Security (GMES) would have 1,000 jobs in jeopardy in the downstream
and there are 800 jobs directly at risk in the telecoms sector.
The "knock on" effects of any cuts in budget will be
devastating for many key sectors linked to Space and also for
investment in research, development and innovation. The UK cannot
afford to ignore a sector as dynamic, innovative and lucrative
as the Space sector.
8. The UK government needs to have the vision
and commitment to continue and increase the financial investment
in Space, acknowledging the dynamic and wide ranging products
and services that come from the initial projects within the sector,
and maximise the niche market for the UK.
October 2006
23 The Case for Space-Britain's best kept secret,
Bill Olner MP, in Environmental and Sustainable Technology, p
10. Back
24
The British Council-Space Industry in the UK. Back
25
UK Trade and Investment-Aerospace Sector. Back
26
British National Space Centre-Size and Health of the UK Space
Industry 2006, p 5. Back
27
ibid. Back
28
UK Trade and Investment-Aerospace Sector. Back
29
British National Space Centre-Size and Health of the UK Space
Industry 2006, p 10. Back
30
ibid. Back
31
British National Space Centre-Size and Health of the UK Space
Industry 2006, p 11. Back
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