Commons Sense

House of Commons · Westminster Hall

Mathematical Sciences: Contribution to Society

15 November 2022 · 3 other contributors · 4,311 words

Opened by Stephen Timms Lab East Ham

Responding minister: Nick Gibb

EducationEconomyScience & Technology

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Stephen Timms raised concerns about mathematical sciences: contribution to society in Westminster Hall. A government minister responded.

Key points

  • The speaker is concerned about the underfunding of mathematical sciences research, with only 124 million of a pledged 300 million invested.
  • Deloitte estimates that mathematical sciences add more than 200 billion annually to the UK economy.
  • The speaker urges the government to clarify the delivery of the remaining 176 million funding and to emphasize the strategic importance of maths to support universities.

Key requests to Government

The speaker calls on the Government to clarify that the remaining £176 million funding will be delivered as pledged and to make clear the strategic importance of maths to incentivise and support universities in giving it priority. He also urges for more investment in recruiting, developing, and retaining maths teachers.

How the debate unfolded

MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said.

Opened the debate

Stephen Timms Lab East Ham

The speaker is concerned about the underfunding of mathematical sciences research, with only £124 million of a pledged £300 million invested so far. He highlights Deloitte's estimate that the mathematical sciences add more than £200 billion annually to the UK economy and emphasises the importance of pure maths in yielding practical applications in future. Additionally, he expresses worry about the shrinking size of maths courses at low-tariff universities, particularly affecting students from lower-income backgrounds.

Other contributors (3)
  • Barbara Keeley Lab Worsley and Eccles South

    The MP highlighted the lack of teacher recruitment as a significant issue for the take-up of core maths post-GCSE.

  • Jim Shannon DUP Strangford

    The MP highlighted the importance of mathematics in addressing climate change and energy supply issues, citing a University of Lancaster study which showed that maths is crucial for building resilience against flooding and understanding data fluctuations related to energy supplies. The MP also noted that 53% of further education students in Northern Ireland are studying STEM subjects.

  • Selaine Saxby

    The MP praised the ongoing debate as part of Maths Week, noting the challenges faced by rural schools in offering specialist science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) sixth forms due to funding issues. The MP suggested that the new ministerial team should apply more mathematical rigor to their funding decisions to better support educational achievements across different settings.

Government Response

Nick Gibb

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Paisley—for the first time, I think. The Government are committed to ensuring that all pupils have a solid grounding in maths and science, encouraging greater participation throughout their school careers to grow future numbers of engineers, research scientists, and technology experts. Improving mathematical knowledge at all levels is likely to deliver significant returns in terms of labour market skills, individual success, increased productivity, and economic benefit. The Government recognise growing demand for STEM alumni and must ensure everyone has the opportunity to pursue these careers regardless of background. The Department spends over £100 million on teaching for mastery, delivered by 40 maths hubs, improving teaching quality in primary schools and beyond. Results from trends in international mathematics and science study showed that year 5 and year 9 pupils continued to perform above international averages in maths and science, with a significant improvement in maths for year 5 pupils. The Government would like more students studying core maths qualifications designed for sixth-formers not studying A-level maths but wishing to continue maths study, preparing them for university and employment demands. In post-16 education, the Department funds programmes such as the advanced maths support programme to expand maths curriculum offerings. For science, funding includes the Stimulating Physics Network to increase rates of progression to physics A-level among girls and Isaac Physics programme to attract more students from under-represented backgrounds into higher education in physics. The Government aim for all pupils to be competent and digitally literate, introducing coding in primary curriculums with computer science as one of the fastest growing GCSE subjects between 2013 and 2019. Research funding includes an additional £124 million committed to mathematical sciences research across UKRI's portfolio without ring-fencing specific budgets to single priorities. The Department ensures schools have access to highly skilled teachers, attracting the brightest individuals through substantial incentives for teaching high-demand subjects.

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