Stockton North

His predecessor, Lord Patrick Vallance, spent nearly a decade in government, first as Chief Scientific Advisor, then a science minister and has been a lifelong advocate for UK science policy.

Macdonald spent two decades in the steel industry before entering Parliament in the 2024 general election when he was elected as MP for Stockton North.

McDonald is clearly a minister who wants to make science more useful to the government and economy, but he's taking over at a time when researchers already feel anxious about cuts and restructures.

So what does this all mean for the UK research agenda? Should universities be worried about scientific research sitting at the forefront of UK industrial strategy? Here to catch us all up on recent developments is reporter Jack Grove, who covers research and science policy for Times Higher Education.