Russell Group pledges to ‘argue hard’ for aid-funded research

Nancy Rothwell’s promise comes as senior UKRI figure gives backing to threatened Global Challenges fund

The chair of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities has said universities will fight hard to safeguard research funding that stems from the recently slashed overseas development budget.

Nancy Rothwell’s comments follow the recent spending review, which saw the government cut aid spending from 0.7 per cent of gross national income to 0.5 per cent, leading to fears over the knock-on impact on research. Both the £1.5 billion Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) and the £735 million Newton Fund come under the aid budget.