Edinburgh University head warns of post-Brexit ‘brain drain’

In a guest editorial of the prestigious U.S. journal, Science, the head of the University of Edinburgh argues that the British withdrawal from the European Union (EU) caused a partial collapse of the “collaborative ecosystem of research and innovation.” 

Peter Mathieson, the university principal [president], called the collapse an “unintended casualty” of the United Kingdom's withdrawal. The UK's membership in the European Union and its predecessor, the European Communities, which Britain joined in 1973, had built bridges for 47 years.

“Without a ‘reset’ of UK–EU scientific relations,” Mathieson writes, “the ‘brain drain’ from the UK—which has already started, with at least 19 researchers funded by the European Research Council recently relocating to EU countries to keep their funding—will become an avalanche.”

His comments appear as an editorial in the Aug. 5 edition of Science, the weekly publication of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. 

Horizon Europe

Writing less than a month after the resignation of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Mathieson expressed the hope that the next prime minister [Liz Truss] will help find a “negotiated solution that allows the UK to continue to maximize its potential as a fully engaged contributor to European research and innovation.” 

He specifically calls for the UK remaining as an associated partner in European Union research programs such as Horizon Europe. 

“In the post-Brexit era, and with a new UK prime minister," Mathieson writes, “the UK and EU should be considering how best to maximize the potential of the numerous brilliant scientists, technicians, academics and clinicians working in the universities and research institutes of all European countries, including the UK”

Mathieson offers some praise to the interim Conservative Party government that acted between the Johnson resignation and the Sept. 6 appointment of Liz Truss.

“To its credit the current UK government has worked to promote and enhance the country’s own scientific endeavors by increasing current funding and pledging more in the future, and by enhancing visa schemes and other immigration rules to continue to attract and retain talented individuals from home and abroad,” he wrote.

However he expresses dismay over “a so-called ‘Plan B,’ for the eventuality that the UK fails to associate with Horizon Europe, the EU’s key research funding program with a budget of 95.5 billion euros.”

Calling this “a poor second best.” the university head points to the case of Switzerland, which has only a limited association with the European Union. He said their taking a similar approach to the proposed “Plan B” left its researchers “seriously isolated.” 

Research Collaboration Team

Noting that some international collaborations can pose national security risks, Mathieson nonetheless warns of the dangers of overzealous legislation designed to “control” or “manage” the country’s universities. 

“The UK could learn from experiences in Australia and the United States where similar recent legislation related to national security has stymied research and innovation,” he said.

A better solution, he thinks, is a well-organized collaboration of academia with national security agencies.

“The university sector in the UK has warmly welcomed the creation of the Research Collaboration Advice Team, which will provide a single point of contact with UK government and security agencies," he wrote. "I and others will continue to work with them and with the security services to understand risk, disseminate good practices, and provide an early warning system when real dangers are recognized.” 

If there is not a “reset” of relations with the European Union, the Edinburg University principal warns, “The role of the UK in the cohesion and productivity of European science will be the victim, with serious implications for global science capability.

“There is an opportunity for the UK government and the European Commission to prevent this. It’s time to untangle science from post-Brexit geopolitics so that European science can thrive,” Mathieson concluded. 

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Peter Mathieson. A key time for UK–Europe science. Science 377 6606 (5 August 2022).  

DOI: 10.1126/science.ade1620