The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) has set out how it will allocate £13.9 billion in funding for transformational research and development in the next year.

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) – the UK’s lead public research funder – will receive £8.8 billion over the next year.

The funding will back UK innovators, like those developing treatment-transforming dementia tests or building world-leading testing facilities to power a greener planet. 

The money will be used to drive forward research that could help the NHS, for example the work on blood tests to diagnose dementia earlier. Researchers are exploring whether looking for proteins specific to many forms of dementia, alongside a quick and easy test of patients’ cognitive functions, could unlock a fast, cheaper and non-invasive way of diagnosing the disease.

Researchers are exploring whether looking for proteins specific to many forms of dementia, alongside a quick and easy test of patients’ cognitive functions, could unlock a fast, cheaper and non-invasive way of diagnosing the disease.