After rumours swirling for weeks, it has been confirmed that basic science and research and development in the UK is set for leaner, more challenging times. While the total R&D budget for this financial year will increase slightly, the country’s main funder of basic research has essentially received a flat cash settlement – a cut in real terms.
What will this mean for universities that are already struggling with a funding crisis? Researchers will have to attempt to do more with less, an unenviable position and one that is sure to lead to a decline in output. The Science and Technologies Facilities Council has already warned that it may not have the funding to run all the experiments it would want to at big science sites such as the Diamond Light Source. Similar issues are sure to be seen across the country.
The UK isn’t alone in facing a funding squeeze – difficult economic conditions mean many countries have trimmed their R&D budgets. This also comes at a time when universities across Europe are being urged to take advantage of top scientific talent leaving the US, meaning it’s questionable whether Europe will be able to capitalise on the scale of that opportunity. One programme in France that is offering 15 places to researchers departing the US has already had 300 applications.
Back in the UK, university heads are quietly concerned about the direction things may be heading in when it comes to quality-related (QR) funding following the science budget news. Around £2 billion is allocated to universities through this route on the basis of how they perform in the UK’s research excellence assessment. As Imperial College’s president, Hugh Brady, explained recently, QR funding gives scientists the stability they need to take risks and universities the funding flexibility they need to make strategic investments in their facilities. It is ‘the envy of our international competitors’, Brady recently said, and he should know: ‘I used to be one of them.’ But last year, the Russell Group of research-intensive universities was warning that between 2010 and 2024 there has been a 16% drop in QR funding in England. The situation is worse in the rest of the country, leading to calls for this funding to be linked to inflation to prevent its slow erosion.
So far, QR funding has been left untouched but there are ominous signs that this may be about to change. The government is reportedly considering taking a more active role in directing which areas of research universities should concentrate on as part of a strategy to kickstart economic growth. This is part of a plan for more long-term R&D planning that is meant to bring greater stability to the sector and a route that provides £2 billion of public money with few strings attached is likely to be scrutinised closely. We’ll find out more at the spending review in June. Long-term planning in science is certainly to be welcomed, but it remains to be seen whether this can deliver when the research base already finds itself facing an extremely challenging financial climate.