A new large facilities science research council has been officially named by former science minister, Lord Sainsbury.

The Science and Technology Facilities Council will bring together existing research work being done by a number of councils and have an annual budget of £530m.

The creation of the new council will enable the UK to play a leading role in the next generation of large-scale physical science projects, says Lord Sainsbury.

'It will bring responsibility for these projects under a single umbrella, and will enable the UK to exploit fully the main synergies between the Particle Physics and Astronomy Council and the Council of the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils,' he said.

'The new Council will be responsible for two science and innovation campuses at Harwell and at Daresbury, and will be better able to exploit their considerable potential for knowledge transfer.'

Originally titled the Large Facilities Council, the new group has been named to make its function more obvious to potential stakeholders in the UK and around the world.

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