Bill Harvey: State of emergency

Last time I mentioned the threat to UK science presented by Brexit, I was inundated by a letter from a Mrs Trellis, North Wales.* I am going to risk similar onslaught again this week because a disturbing report from the Royal Society out this week is definitely worth a mention.

The main findings of the report (available in the news section of the RS website) all show a downward trend in science investment since the 2016 referendum. The headline findings include a fall in the UK’s annual share of EU research funding by almost a third (28%), representing around half a billion Euros since 2015. There has also been a 40% drop in UK applications to Horizon 2020 and a resultant fall in investment. And there is solid evidence that the UK is now a less attractive destination for top international science talent, with a 35% drop in the number of scientists coming to the UK through international funding schemes. Anyone thinking this is good, please write in and explain why – the beauty of science is its ignorance of borders.