STFC refocuses science strategy

The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) has announced a five-year £2.4bn investment strategy that it claims will help deliver future economic benefits to the UK through increased global collaboration.

Prof Michael Sterling, STFC chairman, said that the programme involved ‘tough choices’ and would include ‘managed withdrawal’ from a number of space, nuclear, particle-physics and astronomy projects.

‘This is a major reorganisation of our programme to focus on the top-priority items making use of the international subscriptions’, he said. ‘It allows UK scientists critically important access to the world-class facilities provided by these international consortia.’

As part of the programme, the STFC plans to reduce support for future exploitation grants by 10 per cent next year and cut the number of new studentships and Fellowships by 25 per cent.

However, critics have warned that reducing investment in the next generation of scientists and engineers will be harmful to the UK’s future competitiveness.

Prof David Burgess, director of the Astronomy Unit at Queen Mary University of London, said: ‘The intention to reduce postgraduate studentships by 25 per cent will damage the contribution made by astronomy to scientific training at the highest level.