MPs renew criticism of UK government over lack of chips strategy
(2023/02/03)
- Reference: 1675439060
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2023/02/03/uk_members_parliament_chip_strategy/
- Source link:
The UK government has come under further fire for dragging its feet on a national semiconductor strategy while other industrialized nations push ahead with investment in their own high-tech sectors.
A committee of MPs within the House of Commons has reiterated its call for a semiconductor strategy to be published urgently in order to safeguard the local tech industry, expressing disappointment with the government's response to its earlier report on the state of the industry.
The earlier report, "The semiconductor industry in the UK," was published at the end of November last year by MPs on the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee. As [1]detailed by The Register at the time, it laid out how the UK industry has strengths in some areas but does not have a complete end-to-end supply chain and is vulnerable to any future disruption in global supplies. It contained key recommendations including better cooperation with allies to safeguard supplies and to secure inward investment.
[2]
The committee today indicated it was dismayed that its recommendations had not been fully addressed, and called for a full response to its report whenever an official strategy - due months ago - is finally published.
[3]
[4]
"It's a poor excuse for the government to hide behind its failure to publish a semiconductor strategy for not responding to our practical recommendations fully," said committee chair Darren Jones, who is Labour MP for Bristol North West.
Countries across the globe have grasped the importance of securing semiconductor supply chains for their futures, he said, yet "while others race ahead, ploughing billions into setting up fabs or industry support, we're not even at the starting line." Further delay would be an act of national self-harm, he added.
[5]
In its response to the earlier report in November, the government said it agreed fully on the importance of the semiconductor industry, and there was a need for "timely, coherent and decisive action to be taken across the market."
The government claimed it was already in initial talks with "like-minded nations on the future of the global semiconductor market," including the US, Japan, and Korea.
In order to ensure that the UK is able to contribute significantly to these international discussions, it said it was vital the country remains a key part of the global semiconductor value chain, and the government will need to capitalize on the UK's existing strengths in semiconductor chip design.
[6]
The government said it agrees on the importance of publishing a new UK semiconductor strategy that will set out a clear long-term vision for the UK, adding that, "This is why we are aiming to publish the forthcoming UK semiconductor strategy as soon as possible."
How soon that will be is difficult to tell. The semiconductor strategy was promised at least as far back as April last year, when Lord Callanan told the House of Commons the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport was working on one "to be published shortly."
Meanwhile, in Japan, the country is pushing ahead with plans for its state-backed semiconductor venture [7]Rapidus , which aims to partner with IBM on the development of cutting edge chip technology such as 2nm process nodes.
[8]You there, boffins and tech giants, take this $50m and figure out better chips
[9]Techies ask PM to 'prepare UK chip strategy as a matter of urgency'
[10]Intel angles for more subsidies to build German mega-fab
[11]Intel casts doubt on Italy for chip factory location
[12]Taiwan rolls out tax credits for chipmakers to keep R&D local
Rapidus chairman Tetsuro Higashi told [13]Reuters the company would likely need about 7 trillion yen ($54 billion) of investment in order to begin mass producing advanced chips by about 2027.
By comparison, this is more than the entire $52 billion budget of the US CHIPS Act funding, as well as the €43 billion ($44.8 billion) the EU aims to stump up to fund all of its European semiconductor projects.
In the UK, of course, we instead prefer to spend billions on buying government bonds in order to restore market stability following a disastrous mini budget, (although the real figure was [14]apparently much less than the £65 billion ($78.8 billion) widely mentioned in the media).
The latest talk about UK chips comes just a week after a group of prominent technology industry advocates published an [15]open letter to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak , imploring the premier to "prepare and publish a UK Semiconductor Strategy as a matter of urgency" as "Britain's status as a leading tech ecosystem is at risk." ®
Get our [16]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2022/11/30/uk_semiconductor_industry/
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Y909sb@Nj0GL-WwvuNiRTgAAAAs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Y909sb@Nj0GL-WwvuNiRTgAAAAs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Y909sb@Nj0GL-WwvuNiRTgAAAAs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Y909sb@Nj0GL-WwvuNiRTgAAAAs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Y909sb@Nj0GL-WwvuNiRTgAAAAs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2022/11/11/japan_rapidus/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/27/nsf_partners_with_intel_samsung/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/26/uk_prime_minister_rishi_sunak_chip_strategy/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/18/intel_angles_for_more_germany_subsidies/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/20/intel_gelsinger_casts_italy_factory/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/09/taiwan_chip_tax_credits/
[13] https://www.reuters.com/technology/japanese-chip-venture-rapidus-needs-54-bln-begin-production-says-chairman-2023-02-02/
[14] https://www.standard.co.uk/business/business-news/bank-of-england-spends-fraction-of-ps65bn-emergency-giltbuying-programme-b1030705.html
[15] https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/26/uk_prime_minister_rishi_sunak_chip_strategy/
[16] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
A committee of MPs within the House of Commons has reiterated its call for a semiconductor strategy to be published urgently in order to safeguard the local tech industry, expressing disappointment with the government's response to its earlier report on the state of the industry.
The earlier report, "The semiconductor industry in the UK," was published at the end of November last year by MPs on the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee. As [1]detailed by The Register at the time, it laid out how the UK industry has strengths in some areas but does not have a complete end-to-end supply chain and is vulnerable to any future disruption in global supplies. It contained key recommendations including better cooperation with allies to safeguard supplies and to secure inward investment.
[2]
The committee today indicated it was dismayed that its recommendations had not been fully addressed, and called for a full response to its report whenever an official strategy - due months ago - is finally published.
[3]
[4]
"It's a poor excuse for the government to hide behind its failure to publish a semiconductor strategy for not responding to our practical recommendations fully," said committee chair Darren Jones, who is Labour MP for Bristol North West.
Countries across the globe have grasped the importance of securing semiconductor supply chains for their futures, he said, yet "while others race ahead, ploughing billions into setting up fabs or industry support, we're not even at the starting line." Further delay would be an act of national self-harm, he added.
[5]
In its response to the earlier report in November, the government said it agreed fully on the importance of the semiconductor industry, and there was a need for "timely, coherent and decisive action to be taken across the market."
The government claimed it was already in initial talks with "like-minded nations on the future of the global semiconductor market," including the US, Japan, and Korea.
In order to ensure that the UK is able to contribute significantly to these international discussions, it said it was vital the country remains a key part of the global semiconductor value chain, and the government will need to capitalize on the UK's existing strengths in semiconductor chip design.
[6]
The government said it agrees on the importance of publishing a new UK semiconductor strategy that will set out a clear long-term vision for the UK, adding that, "This is why we are aiming to publish the forthcoming UK semiconductor strategy as soon as possible."
How soon that will be is difficult to tell. The semiconductor strategy was promised at least as far back as April last year, when Lord Callanan told the House of Commons the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport was working on one "to be published shortly."
Meanwhile, in Japan, the country is pushing ahead with plans for its state-backed semiconductor venture [7]Rapidus , which aims to partner with IBM on the development of cutting edge chip technology such as 2nm process nodes.
[8]You there, boffins and tech giants, take this $50m and figure out better chips
[9]Techies ask PM to 'prepare UK chip strategy as a matter of urgency'
[10]Intel angles for more subsidies to build German mega-fab
[11]Intel casts doubt on Italy for chip factory location
[12]Taiwan rolls out tax credits for chipmakers to keep R&D local
Rapidus chairman Tetsuro Higashi told [13]Reuters the company would likely need about 7 trillion yen ($54 billion) of investment in order to begin mass producing advanced chips by about 2027.
By comparison, this is more than the entire $52 billion budget of the US CHIPS Act funding, as well as the €43 billion ($44.8 billion) the EU aims to stump up to fund all of its European semiconductor projects.
In the UK, of course, we instead prefer to spend billions on buying government bonds in order to restore market stability following a disastrous mini budget, (although the real figure was [14]apparently much less than the £65 billion ($78.8 billion) widely mentioned in the media).
The latest talk about UK chips comes just a week after a group of prominent technology industry advocates published an [15]open letter to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak , imploring the premier to "prepare and publish a UK Semiconductor Strategy as a matter of urgency" as "Britain's status as a leading tech ecosystem is at risk." ®
Get our [16]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2022/11/30/uk_semiconductor_industry/
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Y909sb@Nj0GL-WwvuNiRTgAAAAs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Y909sb@Nj0GL-WwvuNiRTgAAAAs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Y909sb@Nj0GL-WwvuNiRTgAAAAs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Y909sb@Nj0GL-WwvuNiRTgAAAAs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/systems&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Y909sb@Nj0GL-WwvuNiRTgAAAAs&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2022/11/11/japan_rapidus/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/27/nsf_partners_with_intel_samsung/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/26/uk_prime_minister_rishi_sunak_chip_strategy/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/18/intel_angles_for_more_germany_subsidies/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/20/intel_gelsinger_casts_italy_factory/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/09/taiwan_chip_tax_credits/
[13] https://www.reuters.com/technology/japanese-chip-venture-rapidus-needs-54-bln-begin-production-says-chairman-2023-02-02/
[14] https://www.standard.co.uk/business/business-news/bank-of-england-spends-fraction-of-ps65bn-emergency-giltbuying-programme-b1030705.html
[15] https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/26/uk_prime_minister_rishi_sunak_chip_strategy/
[16] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Zzzzzzz
Rich 2
It’s about right for our government. I mean ANY British government; not just the latest shower
it’s a national tradition for the govt of the day to be as lame and unresponsive and slooooooooow to react as possible. And when they do eventually wake up, it’s aeons too late and the “action” (I use the term loosely) is woefully inadequate to the point of being humorous
That’s why we’re in such an atrocious mess
No tar and feathers please! I'll go peacefully
chivo243
but aren't MPs part of the gov't? So, aren't they actually blowing hot air on their own failings??
monstoor
I like The Smiths reference!
Brexit
redpawn
should have fixed this problem by now. Anyone care to check if it's happened already?
Perhaps once burned?
How long would it take us to catch up with decent fab? Design appears to be an indigenous skill, albeit championed only by ARM.
Just getting to 5nm is a bit more difficult than getting to 8um and see how we go from there.
We can see attempts in Russia and China which get A* for effort but C- for usefulness. The government tried with Inmos (anyone remember them?) and the Transputer (remember that?). They tried to bully GEC (before it merged and dispersed) We got quite good at III-V or even II-VI (remember those?)
I don't know what the answer is, but reports are easy. I suppose I like to think we are part of the western world which engages in trade conducted within parameters which include the rule of law.
At the turn of the year Macron "addressed the nation" with plans that included reining in Google et al. Not many people seem to like them but spending money on producing also rans doesn't seem to be a great decision.