Science minister Patrick Vallance has acknowledged that UK researchers are going through an “uncomfortable period” within the transition to new funding constructions but insisted “the money is there” to help them.
Appearing alongside science secretary Liz Kendall on the House of Lords’ Science and Technology Committee on 3 March, Vallance defined he “absolutely get[s] the anxiety” of those that had raised considerations about potential cuts to science funding and grant funding pauses since UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) unveiled a shake-up of how it could allocate analysis council budgets.
“I was an academic for long enough – we care a lot about whether grant funding is continuous, whether you are going to have gaps in it and supporting people coming through,” stated Vallance, a former dean of UCL’s medical college who later turned director of analysis at GSK.
“It is an uncomfortable period and I absolutely get the anxiety,” he continued, stating the “terrible comms” associated to plans by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) to avoid wasting £162 million by 2029-30, introduced in late January, had contributed to heightened uncertainty.
“I think the way that was handled, where a letter went out saying ‘can you handle 30, 60 or 70 per cent cuts?’…that is pretty gruesome and we can’t do that,” he stated.
“And the pauses [to grant funding schemes] – that made people think there are other cuts coming. But if you look at the numbers – the numbers all increase,” he stated on the entire funding out there for researchers, with responsive-mode funding rising from £737 million in 2025-26 to £866 million by 2029-30.
“We got the biggest ever settlement for R&D in a Spending Review that was extremely tight…so there is work to be done to articulate this and frankly make it meaningful for people, because the money is there to support them,” stated Vallance.
Reflecting on the modifications, Vallance stated it was essential to recognise the size of the shake-up being led by UKRI’s chief government Ian Chapman.
“UKRI is trying to get into the position that Paul Nurse envisaged,” stated Vallance, referring to the Nobel laureate’s 2015 review that recommended the creation of UKRI.
“Ian is making that happen in terms of increasing interdisciplinary work and greater transparency – there are some painful trade-offs to make to make sure we get this right,” he added.
However, Vallance insisted his “number one priority is to protect and grow curiosity-led research” and he would guarantee this could occur.