New Edinburgh science base named for Prof Higgs

Chancellor George Osborne made the announcement during his Autumn Statement to the House of Commons earlier today.

Named the Higgs Centre for Innovation, the base will provide a dedicated forum designed to link scientific and engineering expertise with industry chiefs.

And it has been awarded nearly £11 million of investment in order to create a leading facility to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers by providing start-up business support and opportunities for new partnerships.

It will be situated at the UK Astronomy Technology Centre - part of the Science and Technology Facilities Council - on the university’s Royal Observatory campus.

Professor Higgs, who won the Nobel Prize for his work on the Higgs-boson particle, said: “This support from the Treasury and the STFC will create an environment in which future generations of scientists from around the world can share and develop ideas in theoretical physics.”