Fallout from Augar review threatens R&D, say universities

Universities could be forced to slash research spending to make up a huge funding shortfall if the recommendations of the Augar review into post-18 education are implemented, the sector increasingly fears.

Universities estimate that the review’s recommendation to reduce tuition fees from £9,250 to £7,500 could leave an £1.8-billion hole overall in institutions’ budgets, if the difference in income is not made up by the Treasury.

As fees often end up being used to subsidise other activities, any cut could have consequences for research, with policy wonks and academics warning it could seriously undermine government ambitions to spend 2.4 per cent of GDP on R&D by 2027.