Research at risk without Brexit deal
HIGHER EDUCATION CHIEFS WARN OF ‘SETBACK’
A NO-DEAL Brexit could spell the end for life-saving and groundbreaking research in North East universities, academics claim.
Cancer research, a search for blindness cures and a fight to make carbon-free energy more accessible are among the Newcastle-based projects that have been funded by EU cash in recent years.
But if Britain leaves the union without a deal that preserves research funding, our universities could face “an academic, cultural and scientific setback from which it would take decades to recover”.
The warning comes in an open letter to MPs, signed by groups representing 150 higher education centres across the UK, which calls the risk of a no-deal Brexit “one of the biggest threats our universities have ever faced”.
World-leading academia contributes more than £21bn to the UK’s GDP every year, the letter says. But that money could be lost.
It says without proper arrangements: “Vital research links will be compromised, from new cancer treatments to technologies combatting climate change.
“The valuable exchange of students, staff and knowledge would be seriously damaged. And we share the concerns of business about the impact of no deal on everything from supply chains to security and travel.
“It is no exaggeration to suggest that this would be an academic, cultural and scientific setback from which it would take decades to recover.”
The letter demands confirmation that Government will replace any lost funding, in particular from the European Research Council and Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions funding schemes, which support “world-leading breakthroughs”, if UK institutions are forced to leave these schemes.
University of Sunderland vicechancellor Sir David Bell, who is also vice-president for England and Northern Ireland of Universities UK, is among those who signed it.
He said: “While I continue to respect the result of the 2016 referendum, I am deeply concerned about the prospect of our country leaving the EU without a deal.
“That, I know, is a view shared by many people in the region, whether they voted to stay in or leave the EU.
“The North East of England has five great universities. I do not want anything to jeopardise their position when it comes to the opportunities they provide to students, the great research they carry out and the thousands of people they employ.”
At Newcastle University, a loss of EU funding could put at risk research that aims to save both lives and the planet.
Among the projects currently funded by the European Research Council at Newcastle is a project aiming to make solar cells more efficient and easier to produce, making carbon-free solar power more accessible across the globe.
Other research could save or change lives.
Professor Majlinda Lako, of the university’s Institute of Genetic Medicine, was handed £1,185,077 for her project to develop new treatments for people who have lost their sight. Professor Christine Harrison from the Northern Institute for Cancer Research received £1,484,012 between 2010 and 2016 to find new ways to identify the genes that contribute to leukaemia in children.
Without a deal, this kind of funding could dry up, university bosses say, putting projects like these at risk in the future.
Professor Chris Day, Newcastle University’s vice-chancellor and president, said: “The prospect of not being able to access vital European research funding post-Brexit is extremely worrying as it could have a hugely negative effect on research and innovation at Newcastle University, which in turn could reduce our ability to support the growth of the local, regional and national economy.
“While the number of undergraduate students from the EU applying to Newcastle has remained at similar levels to previous years, there are indications the uncertainty around Brexit is deterring applications from postgraduate research students.”
The effect on EU-born students and researches is of almost as much concern as the potential losses of EU money, university heads say.
Data from the Russell Group showed that while the number of EU students starting in undergraduate courses increased by 1% yearon-year for 2018-19, the number starting taught postgraduate courses fell by 5%, having risen 4% the previous year.
Those starting postgraduate research courses – including PhDs – fell by 9%, the same as in 201718, according to data collected by the Russell Group in December.
Dr Hollie Chandler, the Russell Group’s senior policy analyst, said: “If we leave the EU without a deal, the uncertainty felt by prospective European students will only get worse.”