The UK government is still preparing to leave the European Union’s €100 billion Horizon research programme, the largest collaboration of scientists in the world, after Boris Johnson’s resignation as prime minister last week.
The UK’s participation in Horizon has been in doubt since it voted to leave the EU in 2016. Under the terms of the Brexit withdrawal agreement in 2020, it could still be included as an “associate member” like other nations, such as Norway and Israel, but the European Commission is withholding access amid a row on border checks between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
At the end of June, the European Research Council (ERC) cancelled more than 140 UK-led grants awarded in its latest funding round as a result of the dispute. George Freeman, then the UK science minister, accused the EU of “weaponising science” in an interview with żěè¶ĚĘÓƵ on 24 June. Freeman said he was planning to launch a new research programme, currently known as “Plan B”, in September if the UK wasn’t allowed to rejoin Horizon.
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However, Freeman was one of a slew of ministers who resigned last week to call for Johnson to step down, and a new science minister hasn’t yet been appointed.
Details on the Plan B proposal are supposed to be published on 21 July before MPs go on recess for the summer. A spokesperson for the UK government told żěè¶ĚĘÓƵ that the government’s position hasn’t changed, and the publication of Plan B will still be going ahead, meaning the UK would be set to formally leave Horizon at the end of 2022 when its membership ends.
However, Johnson’s resignation leaves open the possibility that the UK’s stance on Northern Ireland could change and it might rejoin Horizon. “What’s happening now is anyone’s guess really,” says at the University of Sheffield, UK. “If the Conservative party chooses a less Brexity flavour of leader, there’s a possibility of a more flexible approach to the economic trade debate in Northern Ireland and reopening the question of Horizon.”
The ERC declined to comment on the planned change of leadership in the UK, but its president, , says she hopes the situation can be resolved. “I very much regret that we are currently unable to sign new grants with UK-based applicants,” she says. “Ultimately, we are bound by the legal rules. I sincerely hope that our political leaders will find a path that will allow us to continue supporting talented researchers based in the UK.”
The majority of funding for scientific research in the UK still comes from UK institutions, such as UK Research and Innovation. But the loss of prestige from no longer being able to compete for ERC grants and the diminished opportunities for collaboration with scientists across the EU and beyond are major causes of concern for UK-based scientists.
“The ERC is not essential in the UK,” says at the University of Manchester. “The UK’s got a very well-funded merit-based funding system that funds curiosity-driven science. The ERC in the UK is more about prestige and collaboration with others.”
There are also worries that a new prime minister could decide to cut back on research spending. The UK government had pledged about ÂŁ15 billion to Horizon over the next seven years, and that funding has been earmarked to be redirected into Plan B.
“If you’re looking to make cuts, then, in terms of research funding, Plan B is the easiest place to start,” says Wilsdon. “In terms of the big politics, it’s not likely to cause that much pain if you’ve got an incoming leadership that’s less committed to science.”
