Header 2
December E-Bulletin 2011
In This E-Bulletin
Chancellor's autumn statement
Immigration restrictions
Cuts to Isis
Investment in science
CaSE governance
Round-up
Consultations

Join CaSE


Sign up for the
E-Bulletin
Join Our Mailing List
Follow us on Twitter

Quick Links

Diary


30/11/11 Imran Khan met with the Royal Society of Chemistry

30/11/11 Beck Smith met with the Universities and Science Minister, David Willetts, as a representative of the Heads of University Biological Sciences (HUBS)

 

28/11/11 CaSE organised the Science Question Time Christmas Quiz

 

28/11/11 Imran Khan and Beck Smith met with the new Chief Executive of the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), Professor John Womersley

 

25/11/11 Imran Khan met with Pfizer

 

24/11/11 Imran Khan attended a meeting of the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) Parliamentary Affairs Committee

 

23/11/11 Imran Khan met with the ScientaGroup

 

22/11/11 Imran Khan attended a Parliamentary and Scientific Committee event on Scientific Freedom

 

22/11/11 CaSE met with staff from NESTA

 

18/11/11 Imran Khan attended the London Mathematical Society Dinner

 

18/11/11 CaSE attended the Science Media Centre's 'Introduction to the News Media' event, held at the Wellcome Collection

 

17/11/11 Beck Smith attended the Society for Applied Microbiology Dinner

 

17/11/11 CaSE met with the Head of the Research Council UK Strategy Unit

 

17/11/11 Imran Khan attended a lecture given by Professor Matthew Harrison, Director of Education at the Royal Academy of Engineering

 

16/11/11 Imran Khan met with the Home Office to discuss settlement rights for migrant scientists and engineers 

 

15/11/11 CaSE held a strategy meeting to discuss its future policy direction

 

15/11/11 Beck Smith attended a PolicyNet event on proposed reform of the House of Lords

 

10/11/11 CaSE met with staff from the Science Community Representing Education (SCORE) 

 

09/11/11 Imran Khan attended the Wellcome Trust Book Prize Launch 

 

09/11/11 Imran Khan met with Dr Graeme Reid, Head of Research Funding at the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills

 

09/11/11 Imran Khan attended the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC) AGM

 

08/11/11 Imran Khan attended the Sense About Science lecture

 

08/11/11 Imran Khan met with BASF

 

07/11/11 Imran Khan attended the Rolls-Royce Science Prize Awards

 

07/11/11 Imran Khan met with Cambridge University Press

 

04/11/11 Imran Khan met with the Chief Scientific Adviser at HM Treasury, Professor James Richardson

 

02/11/11 Imran Khan and Sophia Docherty attended the Society of Biology Photography Awards

 

02/11/11 Imran Khan gave a presentation at the 'Science in Government' seminar, hosted by the Society of Biology

 

02/11/11 Imran Khan met with Durham University

 

02/11/11 Sophia Docherty joined CaSE on a 6 week internship 

 

01/11/11 Imran Khan attended a meeting of the Institute of Physics Science Board

 
Please forward this on to any colleagues or friends you think would be interested in supporting science and engineering.

  
Chancellor's £200m boost for science 
CaSE welcomed the £200m of extra investment in science and engineering announced in the Chancellor's Autumn Statement this week. CaSE's comments received coverage in The Times, Guardian, BBC News and elsewhere.
 
We previously welcomed the £100m extra science investment announced in the 2011 budget, and the £195m announced at the Conservative Party conference, which brings the total extra investment announced to almost £0.5bn. However, this is set against an effective £1.7bn cut in the 2010 Spending Review, despite the Government's claims that it 'froze' the science budget.  The wider context surrounding the cuts to science funding can be found in this article by the BBC Science Correspondent, Pallab Ghosh, featuring comments by CaSE Director Imran Khan.  

Immigration restrictions for scientists and engineers 

The Times has published a letter, organised by CaSE, which warns that Government proposals to drastically limit the settlement rights of migrants coming into the UK could seriously damage the country's science and engineering base.    

 

The letter was signed by two former Presidents of the Royal Society, Lord Rees and Lord May, the former Chair of the Science and Technology Committee, Lord Willis, and the Director of the Wellcome Trust, Sir Mark Walport, alongside other individuals from across the science and engineering sector. The letter was accompanied by an article in  The Times.     

 

CaSE has continued to meet and correspond with the Home Office over the government's proposed immigration restrictions. We hope to secure real concessions towards making the UK an attractive place for international scientists and engineers to live and work. For more details about CaSE's efforts on this issue see here.     

 

The letter comes a year after CaSE organised a first letter to the Times, signed by eight Nobel laureates, protesting against the government's initial proposals for an immigration cap. 

 

CaSE exposes impact of science cuts at Isis
A Freedom of Information request by CaSE  revealed how a £3.4m shortfall in funding is putting the Isis neutron source, a £400m world-leading facility, out of action for a third of its operational year. 

 

The loss in scientific capacity at Isis is one of the earliest consequences of the cuts to the science budget, more of which will become prevalent over the coming years. The Guardian published a news story based on our findings, looking at the consequences for everything from clean energy to biotechnology research.

Public investment in science and engineering 
In the House of Commons, the Chair of the Science and Technology Committee, Andrew Miller, cited CaSE's warnings on the precarious state of science and engineering funding, and called for a parliamentary debate on the subject.

Meanwhile on the CaSE blog, intern Sophia Docherty has graphically illustrated science spending in comparison to other areas of UK public spending, based on data published by the Guardian.
CaSE governance 
CaSE held a strategy meeting to discuss its future policy direction, hosted by the Wellcome Trust and sponsored by the Institute of Physics and the Biochemical Society.

The event was preceded by a General Meeting, which included the election of our new Governing Board. We say goodbye to Professor Bill Banks, Dr Judith Ellis, Professor Anthony Finklestein, Mr David Hollinshead, Professor Richard Joyner, Mr Steve Robinson, and Professor Peter Saunders, and we thank them for all their hard work over the years.

We welcome Professor Colin Blakemore, Ms Aisling Burnand, Dr Tom Crick, Ms Becky Purvis, Mr Alom Shaha, Professor Sandy Steacy and Dr Chris Tyler as new Board members. Further biographical details will be available on the CaSE website. We will be holding the first meeting of the Governing Board in January 2012 to discuss CaSE's ongoing work.
CaSE Round-up
  • Higher Education Funding in Wales   
    Dr Lynne Williams, Chief Executive at the Learned Society for Wales, has written for the CaSE blog on their engagement with the Welsh minister for Education and Skills, surrounding the funding of Wales' Universities.
  • House of Lords Reform
    CaSE is planning a meeting on the implications of House of Lords reform to the representation of science and engineering in the upper chamber. The Royal Society has kindly agreed to host the event. Please email Beck Smith if you wish to attend. An invitation will be circulated in due course.
  • £1 Million Prize for Engineering
    CaSE Director Imran Khan was interviewed by BBC News on the launch of the Queen Elizabeth Engineering Prize, a new initiative to promote engineering knowledge.    
  • Scientists and engineers into policy-making
    CaSE consistently encourages scientists and engineers to get directly involved in campaigning for the interests of our sector. We will be publishing a 'how to' guide shortly. For further details please see the 'Get Involved' section of our website.     

If you wish to feed into any of the above policy areas please

get in touch.  

Upcoming consultations


Higher Education in STEM Subjects
House of Lords Science & Technology Committee Consultation Inquiry
Deadline: 16th December

Northern Ireland Assembly, Committee for Enterprise, Trade and Investment
Deadline: 16th December

House of Lords Science & Technology Committee Consultation Inquiry
Deadline: 16th December

Scottish Government Consultation
Deadline: 23rd December

For details about futher events see our policy events calendar 
For more information on our activities go to our website www.sciencecampaign.org.uk
 
To contact us please telephone 0207 679 4994 or email nickh@sciencecampaign.org.uk