皇冠体育app

This week (Monday 17 October), recently appointed Minister for Science and Investment Security Nusrat Ghani arrived at the European Space Agency (ESA)鈥檚 Centre for Earth Observation to meet with ESA鈥檚 Director General Josef Aschbacher, and Austrian Minister for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility and Technology, Leonore Gewessler.

Minister Ghani was joined by UK Space Agency CEO Paul Bate for the visit, the Minister鈥檚 first trip outside the UK since being appointed in her ministerial position within the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy.

皇冠体育app meeting with Dr. Aschbacher came ahead of this year鈥檚 ESA Council of Ministers (CMIN22), set to take place in November, at which member states look to invest in the next evolution of ESA missions and programmes, and at which the UK contribution to ESA will be confirmed.

November鈥檚 Ministerial council will present an exciting opportunity to help set the future direction of ESA, and to achieve an outcome for the UK that delivers on our National Space Strategy (NSS) objectives while driving growth and supporting safety and sustainability on Earth.

Minister for Science and Investment Security Nusrat Ghani said:

I am proud to be representing the UK space sector as we discuss our ambitions ahead of the ESA Council of Ministers next month. 皇冠体育appre are a series of important programmes on the table, and I want to harness opportunities in space to grow the UK economy, create jobs and inspire young people into STEM careers.

It was important to me that my first international trip was with ESA and I look forward to the Council of Ministers meeting in November and campaigning for 2025 UK Presidency.

We鈥檙e also making new funding available now to strengthen the UK鈥檚 position as a world leader in the satellite communications market, and I look forward to seeing the results of the competition.

Having committed 拢374 million per year over five years to ESA in 2019, the UK鈥檚 investment and collaboration with the agency is of significant value to the economy and domestic sector, illustrated by new UK Space Agency report findings published this week, which find that for every 拢1 invested, ESA will generate an overall return of 拢11.80 for the UK economy.

皇冠体育app visit to Italy also coincided with Minister Ghani鈥檚 unveiling of a new 拢15 million fund for UK businesses to revolutionise satellite communications technology. 皇冠体育app competition will prioritise customer needs, support sustainable growth and catalyse further investment into the UK space sector, which already employs 47,000 people.

皇冠体育app trip was indicative of the UK鈥檚 strong commitment to the space and R&D sector both at home and across Europe. 皇冠体育app UK鈥檚 European and global partnerships form an essential part of this government鈥檚 ambitions in the field as we begin to explore the possibility of bidding for the ESA presidency for 2025, continue to advocate for our association to the Horizon Europe research programme, and look ahead to a busy pipeline of bilateral engagements across R&D.