UK Should Lift Astronaut Ban

That the UK has a ban in place, preventing the use of public money to fund sending astronauts into space is new to me. It is true however. England does not fund training and sending astronauts into space -- even via its commitment to ESA. A recent report by the Royal Astronomical Society however, suggests that the UK risks being left behind in the new push for human space exploration, unless it starts participating. The report suggests that while machines will continue to play a large role in space exploration, there's inherent value in having human participation that far outweighs the risks. Not sure I entirely agree with that take on things -- but let's face, it's more fun to have people landing on other planetary bodies than just robots.