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After the Queen’s speech, a battle royal

Science may have been the focus but we still have a fight on our hands

Boris Johnson has been full of platitudes about science since becoming prime minister. This week, the Queen’s speech appeared to pave the way for turning words into action, with science held up alongside justice and the NHS as central to his plans.

The measures flagged in the speech—including a “new funding agency”, “more open visa system” and “ambitious national space strategy”—give credence to rumours that the PM’s controversial closest adviser, Dominic Cummings, has a shake-up of science in his sights. This is reinforced by the expressed desire to reduce the time “brilliant scientists” spend “filling in unnecessary forms” to secure research funding. 

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