Galactic Britain: is our future in space?
It’s time for Britain to go galactic – that’s according to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, talking up the UK space industry’s economic potential and promising the first ever launches from British soil as early as 2022. “The days of the industry idling on the launch pad are over,” he boasted in the foreword to the government’s National Space Strategy, which was released in September 2021.
The wider British space industry can hardly be accused of idling, even without its own launches: the space sector is worth £16.4 billion a year, according to that government report, and employs more than 45,000 people – and it’s growing at a rate of 4.7%, which is faster than the wider UK economy. So the government’s plans have a solid ground from which to launch.
Hidden among pledges to “level up” Britain’s regions, there are a few solid promises in the report, including £5 billion over ten years to boost military satellite communications and £1.4 billion for new technologies. There’s also a goal to become the first European country to launch a rocket into orbit in 2022.
