Sam Barrell, Chief Operating Officer, Francis Crick Institute
The UK government has now published official guidance on how to prepare if the UK leaves the European Union without a deal.
The guidance includes documents on EU science funding under the Horizon 2020 programme, which suggests there are currently no measures in place to secure European Research Council funding, which brings in around 6 million euros to the Crick every year.
In a speech announcing the new guidance, Dominic Raab, Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, reassured the audience that there would be no sandwich shortage in the event of a 'no deal' Brexit, so British people would "still be able to enjoy a BLT after Brexit."
Responding to the new guidance, Dr Sam Barrell, Chief Operating Officer at the Francis Crick Institute, said:
“A ‘no deal’ Brexit would undoubtedly be bad for science; the only real question is how bad. We should not underestimate the value of the UK’s strong international position in science, and the potential impact of failing to reach a deal.
“Although it’s nice to hear the Secretary of State’s reassurances that we can still enjoy a sandwich after Brexit, it’s less clear if the UK will still be able to enjoy our status as a world-leading scientific power.
“We will assess the latest guidance to establish what the impact of a no deal Brexit would have on the important research we’re doing at the Crick, but ultimately government needs to reach an agreement that will preserve the international status of UK science.
“The Francis Crick Institute is an international institute with scientists from over 70 different countries, working together to make discoveries that change lives. More than a third of our scientists come from the EU and we need certainty for them and their families.
“Collaboration is the lifeblood of science. If we fail to reach a sensible agreement with the EU, it could seriously damage our ability to work with key EU partners and, as a result, harm the quality of UK science and our position on the world stage.
“We also need further assurances to secure the UK’s place in major European science projects. Before the Brexit vote, the UK was involved in more EU-funded science projects than any other country. Since the Brexit vote we’ve already been overtaken by Germany."
