Maths is good for much more than winning your Christmas quiz

How many presents were gifted cumulatively during the Twelve Days of Christmas song?

You can write down the words, or you can try to keep count. Or you can simply apply an algorithm, rooted in centuries of knowledge about triangular numbers. In this case, it’s n x (n+1) x (n + 2) ÷ 6, where n is 12 (the days of Christmas).

This gives you the precise answer of 364. That’s one present for every day of the year, except Christmas Day. The irony.

Maths is the language of the universe. It makes sense, therefore, that it would be all around us at Christmas too. If you want every component of Christmas dinner to be ready at the same time, you’ve got to do some hefty (often quick) calculations. You’ve got to budget properly and account for everyone’s presents, even if they haven’t been good. We count down the days until that magical time between Christmas and New Year, when time loses all meaning.

We all use maths all the time, even if we don’t consciously acknowledge it. But not everyone accepts its importance.

That speaks to a wider challenge in the subject; I think that, sometimes, we can take the role of maths, and by extension, UK expertise in the subject, for granted.

Before entering parliament last year, I was a Maths teacher. I’ve taken every opportunity I can to talk up Mathematics, especially its innate beauty, but also its application across different areas of policy as the Government seeks to complete the missions it set out a year ago.

For example, this Government is rightly focused on maintaining the UK’s position as a global leader in AI. That goal relies on maths. Data centres are essential, but the big wins in AI will come from advancing algorithm development and creating the next breakthrough in software. We’ve got the skills and the people to do that in the UK, if we nurture our pipeline of maths talent and support cutting-edge research in our universities.

Estimates vary as to how much the mathematical sciences contribute to the UK economy, from £200 billion to £500 billion. But everyone agrees that nurturing maths talent will fuel economic growth.

Unfortunately, the nation will still have to contend with our uncertain world in 2026. Defence spending must rise to meet the challenge from Russia and elsewhere. But we should always take investing in maths seriously.

It is the mathematical sciences that underpin codebreaking, from Bletchley Park to today’s quantum computers. Maths is crucial to our defence hardware, software and overall approach to military strategy. It’s essential to everything we are trying to accomplish.

That’s why I support the Campaign for Mathematical Sciences. We must all make the case for maths, whether it’s to politicians, policymakers, or the public. And we can go further still.

As we count down the days until 2026, we must ensure that those of us who recognise the importance and delight of the mathematical sciences speak up for them at every opportunity in the coming year.

The value of maths lies beyond just Christmas trivia, it is absolutely key to sharpening the UK’s competitive edge and to solving the biggest challenges that face us all.

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Mark Sewards is the Labour MP for Leeds South West and Morley.

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