The UK government should consider offering seed-corn funding or a prize to encourage launcher development, according to a UK parliamentary committee report published on 17 July.
The UK ended its involvement in launchers in 1971 with the nation's first and last satellite launch.
However, the House of Commons science and technology committee's report 2007: A Space Policy recommends that a launcher for small, low-cost satellites be considered by the UK Ministry of Defence and the government's department for innovation, universities and skills.
The report also recommends the "establishment of a regulatory framework and responsible body with the relevant authorities" for space tourism.
In fact, the UK government may have to get involved because of a series of Cold War-era international treaties concerning space launches if Virgin Galactic's plans to offer flights from 2009 come to fruition.
Historically, the UK has avoided manned spaceflight, but in this first parliamentary review of policy for over a decade, it says: "The government currently objects to manned spaceflight on principle...this is unjustifiable."
The UK government's civil space activity co-ordinator, the British National Space Centre, is to produce a report on the country's potential involvement in future international exploration projects, which could include human spaceflight.
Despite the UK regularly renewing its space policy - most recently for 2003-2006, with 2007-2010 to follow - space has received little attention from select committees of the Commons or House of Lords.
Neither the Lords' nor the Commons' science committees has produced a report on space policy for more than a decade and the last Commons trade and industry committee report was in 1999.
A UK government Department of Trade and Industry review of the British National Space Centre's work in 2002 saw UK space policy developed further.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
