Scientists: Working in the United Kingdom

Lord Mair Excerpts

Tuesday 13th May 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Vallance of Balham (Lab)]

I thank my noble friend. He is quite right; there are a number of schemes from charities and, indeed, as I have said, from the academies. Over £200 million of funding goes to the national academies to support their core activities. The vast majority of that is spent on research and talent schemes. Some £400 million was given to the Royal Society and the Royal Academy of Engineering as an endowment for their specific fellowship schemes—the Faraday Discovery Fellowships, and, for engineers, the Green Future Fellowships. There are many charities that also contribute, and we are fortunate in this country to have charities, including the Wellcome Trust, that provide substantial funding for fellowship schemes.

[Lord Mair (CB)]

My Lords, other countries have been quick to act decisively in the light of the Trump Administration’s severe cuts to US science budgets. Is there not a real danger of the UK falling behind? Should this not be addressed very urgently?

[Lord Vallance of Balham (Lab)]

I reiterate the point I made: it is very important that we make schemes available to people from all over the world; it is not about targeting a specific country. We will do so, and we are working on schemes to make attractive offers both to individuals and to groups. This is an important area. There have already been many approaches to universities for people who want to base themselves here, and it is important that we have a system that is sustainable and effective, making sure that researchers can work in what is a world-class system in the UK.