Align research funding with policies, learned societies say

Government science funding must be aligned with “properly planned” immigration and education policies and accompanied by sustained capital investment, four UK academies have said.

In a joint response to a Department for Business, Innovation and Skills consultation, the presidents of the Royal Society, British Academy, Royal Academy of Medical Sciences and Royal Academy of Engineering, call for an “innovation revolution” with research at its core.

At the same time as strongly supporting continued ring-fencing of the science budget, they urge government to ensure that other areas outside it, such as postgraduate teaching and capital projects, are not damaged by cuts. They add that the science budget cannot substitute departmental research budgets or vice versa.