Funds and fundability

Resignations over ODA research, a university changing hands and a regulator challenged

The gap between ‘ideal’ and ‘reality’ in higher education can sometimes feel like the difference between being a lead character in a Jane Austen novel and being an extra in Bridgerton. Yet both scenarios involve a complex plot with frequent twists and turns.

Let’s begin with the story broken last night by Robin Bisson, the Tintin of Research Professional News, who tells us that six members of a research council advisory group for international research have resigned. The researchers say they are “deeply embarrassed” at the damage done to overseas partnerships by UK government cuts to the aid budget.