Meeting of the Parliament 27 April 2023
Thirty-four years ago, Neil Armstrong uttered the immortal words:
“one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind”.
Since the last manned lunar mission in 1972, human space exploration has focused largely on low earth orbit missions, communications and observation satellites, and unmanned scientific exploration. Now, with space attracting high levels of private funding, coupled with advances in technology and growing public sector interest, more and more countries are looking to the stars. Over the next 17 years, the annual revenue that is generated by the global space industry is expected to hit £1 trillion. The challenge for Scotland is to ensure that it competes and collaborates in the global space economy—to infinity and beyond.
How are we doing today? Glasgow alone produces more small satellites than anywhere else in Europe. A key player is AAC Clyde Space, a UK-Swedish venture that produces satellites for weather forecasting, precision farming and environmental monitoring, which we have heard about before.
Outwith Glasgow, the UK Space Agency is supporting the development of vertical and horizontal launch spaceports across Scotland, including in Shetland, Sutherland, Argyll, Prestwick and the Outer Hebrides. On the Lamba Ness peninsula, preparation work is under way on the first integration hangar, where rockets will be assembled and satellite payloads will be integrated. Shetland’s SaxaVord spaceport is part of the UK-wide effort to gain a £4 billion share of the global space market over the next seven years. The site was completed in 2022 and will support up to 30 vertical launches a year from a former Royal Air Force site. With regard to jobs, up to 200 people are engaged in each launch. Scotland’s space sector generated an income of £180 million in 2021. Scotland now has more than 180 space organisations, while our total space industry workforce numbers 8,500.
Our fantastic universities also play a vital role in developing Scotland’s space industry. At the University of Edinburgh, backed by £30 million of UK Government funding, the £45 million Bayes centre is home to world-class data science and artificial intelligence, which is required to support growth on the data side of the space industry. The University of Glasgow’s space Glasgow research cluster focuses on cutting-edge research into space flight and exploration and has partnerships with industry and organisations such as the European Space Agency. The University of Strathclyde’s space cluster works with industry partners to support space research on the likes of satellites, handling space debris, robotics and data analytics.
The UK Space Agency is launching a £20 million fund to support international partnerships that will harness the UK’s national strengths, support new space capabilities and catalyse investment. Up to £2 million will initially be available to help to strengthen the space sector’s partnerships with other space nations. Funding is available to industry, academia and research organisations to work with international partners on projects that could help, for example, to bring new services to market or support cutting-edge research.
Scotland truly has the potential to benefit from the global growth in the space sector, but that will require a sharp focus on investment in our universities’ funding for research and development. In turn, that will attract a highly skilled workforce to live and work in Scotland. The UK space sector is a growing and exciting industry that the UK Government is fully committed to supporting and investing in, including in Scotland, where opportunities abound. Unleashing the possibilities of Scotland’s space sector can occur only if Scotland remains within the UK, where our resources can be pooled, knowledge can be shared and the UK Government can provide significant investment into a range of exciting projects.
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