Brown warns firms to invest in science

Gordon Brown today warned the UK economy could slide backwards unless businesses invest heavily in science and new technology.

The Chancellor told business leaders they must not take Britain's economic prosperity for granted.

Warning that exports from China and India will soon outstrip those of the most developed nations, he said: "In this competitive global era, to fail to confront, to complacently sidestep long-term decisions, would mean Britain left behind." The future lay with high-skill jobs in advanced industries.

China produces 125,000 computer science graduates a year while the UK only produces 5,000, Mr Brown told the CBI in Birmingham.

"Within 20 years half the world's manufacturing exports could come from developing countries," he added. "Already China is exporting more than France, Italy and Britain."