Sweeney: make ‘positive’ case for global collaboration after cuts

Ministers will increase research funding “exactly as they have said”, despite recent spending rows, while academics can make the case for international projects after major cuts by combining “a reasonable protest with a positive argument”, according to Research England’s executive chair.

David Sweeney made the comments during Universities UK’s International Higher Education Forum on 13 April.

There have been ructions over research funding in recent weeks, as the government’s commitment to huge increases in research spending comes up against concerns about the state of public finances in the wake of the pandemic. UK Research and Innovation has said it will have to cancel funding for most projects supported under schemes such as the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) and the Newton Fund after reductions in government Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations left it facing a £120 million shortfall. Meanwhile, there were acute fears that the government would not provide extra funding to cover the costs of the UK’s association to the EU’s Horizon Europe programme, spelling a huge cut for the rest of the research budget, before a last-minute agreement was reached.

Mr Sweeney referred to “unhappiness about decisions which have been taken which give us more challenges – some of us – rather than fewer challenges”.

He added that we should “acknowledge” that “some of that discomfort with things has reasonably resulted in protest – and if we’re not capable of standing up for what we believe in, I don’t think life is worth living”.

“Let’s acknowledge that things have been difficult, that protest is reasonable, but we should look to the future,” he continued.

Mr Sweeney also said: “As the government has room for manoeuvre on the funding landscape – and I do honestly believe that the funding for research and development will increase in the way the government has said, but perhaps not as frontloaded as we had hoped – we’ve got to build the case for that money being spent on international partnerships because we think it’s the best thing to do, not just because it’s a charitable donation.

“The benefits from working with those in other countries are tremendous to us. Let’s refocus the argument on the mutual benefits…Let’s come up with case studies that will persuade the government.”

He added: “You will change the government’s mind through combining a reasonable protest with a positive argument.”

Mr Sweeney told the event, held virtually, that the ODA cuts were “a very clear government policy – we can’t reverse that. But the government is generally supportive of the research directions we’ve been talking about for ages…that includes international collaboration. So, you are just going to have to wait long enough to see those fruits turn into opportunities. But we’re planning on the basis of future increases in government investment exactly as they have said.”

john.morgan@timeshighereducation.com