California may have the heat, but Chancellor Rachel Reeves is betting on Britain’s own Silicon Valley—a 66-mile corridor between Oxford and Cambridge—to drive UK growth, potentially adding £78 billion to the economy by 2035.
Speaking in Oxfordshire last month, Reeves unveiled plans for the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor, a hub of homes, transport links, and infrastructure she calls “the home of British innovation.”
This bold initiative revives a similar project scrapped by Boris Johnson three years ago, aligning with Reeves’ agenda to prioritise UK economic growth. Former Covid chief Sir Patrick Vallance will lead efforts to accelerate scientific progress, supported by thousands of new homes and nine new reservoirs to attract talent.
According to Gareth Blades, analyst at Amati Global Investors, the focus on infrastructure and connectivity makes the plan promising.
“Great tech and science clusters—like Silicon Valley or Taiwan’s semiconductor ecosystem—thrive on proximity to key institutions and strong transport links,” says Blades. “A growth corridor could boost collaboration, idea-sharing, and spin-outs from these top universities.”
