Select committee: Scottish Affairs Committee
Conclusion 118
First Report - Universities and Scotland
Published 28 May 2021
Addressed to Scotland Office
Scottish Affairs Committee Universities and Scotland All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
The decision to reduce UK ODA spend from 0.7% to 0.5% of GNI, and the implications this has for the financing of UK academic research, has been criticised by the higher education sector, especially in Scotland, with Universities Scotland saying: [ … ] the scale of cuts is significantly higher than expected, at an eye watering 70% according to the latest estimates. The implications of this announcement appear to be completely at odds with the UK Government’s bold ambitions [in the UK Government R&D Roadmap] to make the UK a science superpower and increase investment in research and development and with the UK’s stated aim to recast itself as a “global Britain” in the wake of Brexit. [ … ] UKRI have indicated that they will have to reprofile and reduce grants and may have to terminate some projects that are already in progress. This is previously unheard of. Doing so would abandon many communities in low and middle income countries around the world [ … ]. 261 HMG, ‘UK Research and Development Roadmap’, accessed 20 April 2021 262 HMG, ‘UK Research and Development Roadmap’, accessed 20 April 2021 263 Q118 264 Q119 265 Q5 266 “UUK response to government’s research and innovation roadmap”, Universities UK, 1 July 2020 267 House of Commons Library, ‘Spending Review: Reducing the 0.7% aid commitment’, accessed 19 April 2021 268 “UKRI required to review Official Development Assistance funding”, UKRI, 11 March 2021 269 “UKRI required to review Official Development Assistance funding”, UKRI, 11 March 2021 46 Universities and Scotland It threatens to undermine the trust we and mutual respect have built up with our partners, over decades, as an essential component of overseas development. It sends a message about what the UK does and does not value, which is fundamentally at odds with the values of Scotland’s universities. It poses a huge financial risk to the sector and a risk to jobs and the prospects of early career researchers. Ultimately, termination before completion is a
From: Scottish Affairs Committee, First Report - Universities and Scotland (HC 54), 28 May 2021
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 27 April 2022 (deadline 28 July 2021).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government's response sets out continued work with the devolved administrations and existing UK-wide policies on international students, immigration, research funding and talent, and states it will submit a response to the earlier Immigration and Scotland report "shortly".
- On the Turing Scheme, it confirmed funding for three years, including "£110 million for the 2022/23 Academic Year". It states the scheme "prioritises pupils, students and learners over staff and inward mobility funding", and says the first year's impact will be evaluated.
- On Erasmus+, it states that President Von Der Leyen "has previously confirmed that association by part of a country is not legally possible".
- On UKRI, it states that Board appointees "are not recruited to represent any constituency, sector or regional grouping", while a legal requirement to have regard to research conditions in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is taken into account. It says Research England's place on the Executive Committee reflects its status as a legal component of UKRI.
- On visa costs, it states that "UK visa fees are broadly in line with our competitors" and that it will "continue to keep visa fees under review".