The UK’s Conservative party has appointed James Dyson as their technology tsar.

Speaking at the party’s annual conference in Manchester, Dyson called for more support for science, via avenues such as tax breaks for high tech industry. He also called for education, saying Britain had 58,000 engineering vacancies but produced only 20,000 engineering graduates a year.

“More than ever, we need to value our scientists and engineers. Our future wealth depends on it,” said Dyson (Guardian).

In a suggestion that may not go down well in the financial services sector – where employees are traditionally viewed as Conservative voters – he added that the UK could “make money from money – or money from making things” (Daily Telegraph).

Dyson will be heading up a taskforce aiming to see how Britain can be made a high-tech exporter. UK policy addict and founder of Research Fortnight William Cullerne Bown posts this joke (although he claims not to be its originator):

re Dyson Review – how much is he going to Hoover up?

As the Guardian notes, self-styled champion of engineering Dyson has already had to admit that his high tech products are actually manufactured overseas. But the R&D, patents, and profits remain British, says the Guardian.

Dyson is most famous for inventing a widely used bag-less vacuum cleaner and his appointment sets up an intriguing clash with Amstrad founder and Labour ‘enterprise tsar’ Alan Sugar.

There’s only one route left for the UK’s third party, the Liberal Democrats: hire Clive Sinclair, and quickly!