Academy head voices fears over no-deal Brexit

Leaving the European Union without a comprehensive agreement poses a “grave risk” to UK medical research, Robert Lechler, president of the Academy of Medical Sciences, has warned.

In a statement published on the academy’s website on 2 October, six months before the UK’s planned departure from the EU, Lechler said the stakes for medical research were “high”. 

“Leaving Europe without a deal risks the loss of researchers from our laboratories, universities and hospitals; the disruption of productive and long-term collaborations; lost access to millions of pounds of research funding; and significant additional barriers to clinical trials and research into rare diseases,” he said.