The British Government says it will back plans for an expansion of the UK space industry - increasing their input to 40 billion pounds by 2030. The government has said they are also considering developing legal framework so that a spaceport could be built in the UK.

The government's announcement comes in response to an industry report published last year that called for a properly funded national space programme in the UK.

The space industry in the UK already generates 9.1 billion pounds a year for the economy and saw a 7 per cent growth every year throughout the recession.

But now with further government backing through changes to the law and the regulations companies work by - how can the UK space industry grow further?

David Parker is CEO of the UK Space Agency:"Right now the UK is perhaps not known for its space activities as much as it should be. We're trying to pass the message that Britain is a great place to have a space business. We've got really good environment for the space industry that we're building: a good regulatory environment, a good tax base that allows space companies to grow and prosper."

The government are also considering plans to develop a legal framework that could permit a spaceport to be set up in the country - The first of its kind.

This would act as a travel hub where spaceships could depart with passengers on board and take them into space for a few minutes at a time.

Virgin Galactic could be sending tourists into space as early as the end of this year - but for the time being, that will be from their headquarters in the United States.

The British space business now aims to make its mark on a quickly evolving global space industry - where stalwarts such as NASA and the Russian Federal Space Agency work alongside emerging agencies from countries like India.

David Parker says the UK space industry can be involved in many interesting technological developments: "In future, we're going to see an awful lot more data becoming available from satellites much more cheaply and the opportunity to develop lots more applications from space in everday life. It's possible to get real-time video data from satellites in orbit, so you can count the number of cars in a car park or supermarket; you can use satellite to monitor shipping in remote locations."

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Britain to plough billions into the space industry