In an opinion article for the Daily Telegraph published in June last year, Boris Johnson suggested that his government would restore the UK as a “science superpower”. Envisioning himself as a caped crusader with a bold B for Brexit branded on his chest, Johnson has continued over the last year in his attempts to push to restore the UK to its former scientific glory, bringing the ‘super’ back to UK science.

In the same article, Johnson expressed how we are all “so deeply and so obviously indebted to science – and to scientists”. The comment was largely made in reference to the work of scientists throughout the Covid-19 crisis, and how they came to the rescue in our hour of need by navigating us through the pandemic and providing us with a vaccine. But the same goes for other critical areas of work, from artificial intelligence and climate change to the broader health concerns associated with an ageing population.

The importance of research and development...