Written question asked by David Chadwick (Liberal Democrat) on Thursday, 6 February 2025, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 10 February 2025. It was answered by Simon Lightwood (Labour) on Friday, 14 February 2025 on behalf of the Department for Transport.

Railways: Research

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking with the rail industry to ensure it can access a greater share of competitive research and development funding through UKRI and Horizon Europe.

Answer: Research, Development and Innovation (RD&I) play a critical role in helping the rail industry reduce its emissions and costs, optimise operations, improve resilience and safety and enhance passenger experience. The Department of Transport continues to engage closely with Horizon Europe, through the European Rail Joint Undertaking (ERJU), to collaborate. DfT officials represent the UK on the ERJU States Representative Group (SRG) to promote the UK rail sector and, working alongside Network Rail, access available funding for projects that are aligned to UK Government priorities. The Department of Transport also supports UK rail industry RD&I though funding the Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), First of a Kind (FOAK) programme, amongst other RD&I programmes. The FOAK programme aims to accelerate and increase the adoption of innovation within rail and received approximately £7.7m between FY2022-23 and FY2024-25.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 29753
Session: 2024-26
Subjects: Finance Railways Research UK Research and Innovation Horizon Europe
Link: View this Written question on www.parliament.uk