The University of Cambridge hopes to land a huge funding package from Rachel Reeves’ October budget to kick-start a new science innovation hub to match its American rivals.

The University has asked Chancellor Rachel Reeves for £15 million in the upcoming budget for the initiative, which a pro-vice-chancellor claims is “critical” to scientific development in the UK.

Dr Diarmuid O’Brien, pro-vice-chancellor for innovation, told The Financial Times: “At the moment we’re asking universities to deliver spinouts, but the question is how do we move the needle in a way to significantly amplify that? Business as usual won’t get you there. This kind of hub is critical to that, and that penny needs to drop here.”

The PVC hopes that the Cambridge-based hub would rival those set up in America and Paris in recent years. Kendall Square, a sciences “ecosystem” in Massachusetts, has been developed by MIT, which was visited by UK officials this year and has been a focal point for investment.

The PVC says that the hub would become a national asset for the development of tech startups.

The Labour Party has claimed that it is “committed to building technology infrastructure” in the UK, despite shelving £1.3bn in funding for AI and technology which had been promised by the Tories.

O’Brien said that the government must commit to tech funding: “We need that cornerstone commitment from the government to sell it both to the market and philanthropic foundations. If we can unlock that funding we can accelerate it at pace. We’re not looking for a grant, it’s a partnership.”

Cambridge has become known in recent years as a UK hub for science innovation, with some dubbing the area the ‘Silicon Fen’.

Michael Gove, who had been Levelling Up Secretary for the Conservative government, had been pushing plans to make Cambridge the new ‘Silicon Valley’ through tech investment.

Multiple Cambridge councillors were opposed to the plans, claiming that the region’s water scarcity issues needed to be addressed as part of any such initiatives.

Cambridge Ahead, an organisation pushing for tech growth in the city, has welcomed the possible funding. Dan Thorp, its chief executive, said: “If it’s approved it will provide a high-ambition, innovation-led centre for what Cambridge can achieve for the country in the future, but that’s only possible if we resolve the water scarcity and transport infrastructure deficits we face.”