Science is Vital!

The science budget has miraculously avoided drastic cuts in the recent Comprehensive Spending Review. Leila Sattary looks back at the events leading up to the announcement and the part scientists have played in saving British science

The events of the last few weeks have really been astounding. It is not often that scientists let politicians know what really matters to them but the threats of sweeping cuts to science was enough to get them out of the lab and on to the streets.

It all started with a blog post by Dr Jenny Rohn, a cell biologist at UCL, who called on scientists to take action to avoid the predicted cuts to the science budget. She began a grassroots movement called Science is Vital which aimed to lobby politicians to save British science. In three short weeks, Science is Vital gathered over 33,000 signatures on a petition to Government to lay out a supportive strategy for UK science and engineering and maintain a level of investment at least in line with economic growth. Signatories included numerous leading scientists, Nobel Prize winners and an array of celebrities.

While the science budget is protected until 2014, it will not increase with inflation and in real terms will equate to a 10% cut. However, this settlement is a big achievement for the science community when immediate cuts of 25% or more were expected.

In addition to the petition, Science is Vital also organised a rally ahead of the Comprehensive Spending Review and I took the opportunity to don my lab coat and join the thousands of scientists that gathered outside of the Treasury at Westminster.

It really was a sight to behold – 2000 scientists chanting “Hey, Osbourne, leave our labs alone” at the Chancellor’s window. Despite attempts at being an irate mob, the crowd remained positive and the focused on celebrating the successes and economic impact of science. Led by ex-MP Evan Harris, the lobby included speeches from the likes of Colin Blakemore, Former Chief Executive of the Medical Research Council, Ben Goldacre, author of Bad Science and Mark Miodownik who is giving this year’s Royal Institution Christmas Lectures.

As I spoke to the protesters I realised that the uniqueness of the gathering was not just in the dress code and the concentration of PhDs on one street. The people were not protesting simply because they were worried about their jobs and their careers, they really believed that science is absolutely essential to economy. They were protesting to ensure the future prosperity of the UK.

After the recent statement from the Royal Academy of Engineering encouraging the Government to fund engineering at the expense of physics, it was heartening to see scientists from every discipline gathered together for one cause. In times of austerity, it is easy to cling to your own scientific faction but a stronger case could be made if we came together, and Science is Vital made that possible.

Obviously, it is difficult to know whether the Science is Vital movement made a difference, but I think they can at least take some credit. The press coverage alone has had a huge impact. During the week of the rally and the delivery of the petition, the science budget made front page news in the broadsheets on many consecutive days. Science is Vital has put science of the political agenda but also raised awareness in the public consciousness of the importance of science and the role it plays in our economy.

So, despite my column being called “Lab Rant”, witnessing scientists successfully lobbying politicians has put me in such a good mood I have nothing to complain about (at least this month).