Coordinating energy and innovation policies: UK R&D Policy for emerging renewables under Blair, 1997-2003

Abstract The design of novel green industrial policies presents a coordinative challenge for national governments, crossing many policy domains. This paper focuses on the coordination of Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) policies and energy policies, asking: How do elected political leaders coordinate STI and energy policies on emerging energy innovations? We answer this question by considering the case of STI and energy policy coordination in the UK between 1997 and 2003, describing the political leadership of key members of the Blair government. The case illustrates that strong political leadership guided by a party-specific cross-cutting political-economic agenda (e.g. New Labour) can play a critical role in coordinating policy reforms across multiple domains. In the European context, the case provides a precedent for how STI and energy policies may be aligned to support European competitiveness, in that it points to the importance of both formal institutional reforms and informal political leadership.