Edinburgh asks for special Brexit deal for universities

UK must negotiate a research relationship that enables both collaboration and access to funding, says principal of Scottish university.

The UK government should negotiate a “bespoke research arrangement” as part of the Brexit deal, according to Tim O’Shea, principal of the University of Edinburgh.

Speaking to the MPs on the Scottish Affairs committee on 24 October, O’Shea said British UK universities should seek a better deal from the European Research Area than other member countries outside the EU, such as Switzerland and Israel, to ensure they continue to contribute to the strategic planning of the research agenda. He said it was “not inconceivable” that a special deal might be negotiated, particularly given the number of British researchers on the committees that determine the structures. Failing that, he added that it would be important to ensure it will be “very clear” how much money the UK will contribute to the collective research and how much it will be allowed to take out. While he said he couldn’t model likely Brexit scenarios with confidence before the final deal is reached, he said they ranged from “bad to awful to catastrophic” for universities.