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Universities' decisions during technology transfer may affect affordability, accessibility, and availability of COVID-19 health technologies downstream. We investigated measures taken by the top 35 publicly funded UK universities to ensure global equitable access to COVID-19 health technologies between January and end of October 2020. We sent Freedom Of Information (FOI) requests and analysed universities' websites, to (i) assess institutional strategies on the patenting and licensing of COVID-19-related health technologies, (ii) identify all COVID-19-related health technologies licensed or patented and (iii) record whether universities engaged with the Open COVID pledge, COVID-19 Technology Access Pool (C-TAP), or Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) COVID-19 licensing guidelines during the time period assessed. Except for the Universities of Oxford and Edinburgh, UK universities did not update their institutional strategies during the first year of the pandemic. Nine universities licensed 22 COVID-19 health technologies. Imperial College London disclosed ten patents relevant to COVID-19. No UK universities participated in the Open COVID Pledge or C-TAP, but discussions were ongoing in autumn 2020. The University of Bristol endorsed the AUTM guidelines. Despite important COVID-19 health technologies being developed by UK universities, our findings suggest minimal engagement with measures that may promote equitable access downstream. We suggest universities review their technology transfer policies and implement global equitable access strategies for COVID-19 health technologies. We furthermore propose that public and charitable funders can play a larger role in encouraging universities to adopt such practices by making access and transparency clauses a mandatory condition for receiving public funds for research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The historical geography of the British motorcycle industry (its distribution over time and the rate at which motorcycle marques entered and exited) shows two major agglomerations or clusters (West Midlands and Greater London) to have been the driving force behind the industry. Motorcycle marque exits from the industry (shakeout) had a net positive effect on the West Midlands and a net negative effect on the Greater London area. Spin-off of new companies was primarily an internal process in the West Midlands and an external process in the Greater London area. The high level of spatial concentration, the rapid rate of technology diffusion, and large number of spin-off firms helped the British motorcycle industry to maintain a wide variety of marques over a long time. However, each successive shakeout period resulted in an industry that was increasingly innovation-averse and stagnant, eventually ending in its near total collapse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Knowledge transfer (KT) has entered the higher education arena in the UK as the ‘third sector’ of higher education activity—along with research and teaching. Its antecedents lie in the commercialization and technology transfer of the late 1980s and 1990s, and this business-like orientation remains dominant in the KT policy discourse. This paper explores the extent to which policy for KT may be understood both as ‘travelling’ policy shaped by globalizing trends in pursuit of successful competition in the new knowledge economy (KE) and as ‘embedded’ policy mediated by local contextual factors that may translate policy to reflect local priorities and meanings. In considering evidence of ‘embedded’ policy the paper develops its arguments through preliminary analysis of KT policy in Scotland where—at least at the level of discourse—there is an attempt in post-devolution Scotland to encourage KT in the broader public interest. However, KT’s antecedents may continue to shape the engagement of academic staff in Scotland, as may the wider context of UK policy steering in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports on the proposed merger of the Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council and the Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils. According to government spokespeople, the motivations for the proposed merger include positioning Great Britain to play a stronger role in the next generation of European and global projects and gaining dour with the business community, which could benefit technology transfer.