Britain is in danger of losing a “special relationship” with the world’s emerging science superpower, India, unless there is government investment in collaborations, a report said.

The United States and other European rivals are increasingly supplanting Britain as Indian scientists’ international partners of choice because they take a more proactive approach to funding joint research, according to Demos, the independent think-tank.

The Government should set up a £100 million fund for international collaborations for British scientists, and establish a “Darwin scholarships” scheme to bring 200 Asian scientists to Britain each year, the Atlas of Ideas report said yesterday. Without such investment, British science will fall behind rivals in Europe and North America who engage more effectively with the emerging research giants of Asia.

“Britain is sleepwalking out of its special relationship with India because not enough people have woken up to how fast the country is changing,” said Charles Leadbeater, one of the authors of the report.

“Britain is being displaced by US and other European countries with more aggressive collaboration programmes. Many Indian policymakers believe that the UK is in danger of complacency, with most young Indians now choosing the US and Silicon Valley over the UK.”

Gordon Brown, the Chancellor, and Alistair Darling, the Trade and Industry Secretary, are due to visit India this week, and the Government has funded a £25 million initiative to support collaborations between Indian and British researchers.

This must be only the first step if Britain is not to be left behind, Mr Leadbeater said. “Britain has a choice,” he said. “Either we become a marginal science and innovation player in world terms, just as we have in the car industry, or we can take our lead from the City of London and become a global hub for cosmopolitan innovation. That means choosing our areas of specialisation, collaborating with others and placing ourselves at the centre of knowledge and innovation networks.”

James Wilsdon, co-author of the report, said that similar strategies are needed in China and other Asian countries with growing research sectors. “Innovation is not a zero-sum game,” he said. “More in Asia doesn’t mean less in Europe. But we need a more distinctive story about Britain’s strengths.

“China is the world’s fastest-growing economy. The US is the home of high-tech and Hollywood. What’s our one-line pitch to the world? We think Britain should promote itself as a cosmopolitan centre: open and willing to support the best ideas and the most innovative talent from across the world.”

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