This week has been extraordinary for UK politics and for the STEM community in particular, with key Brexit votes, a spring statement covering PhD and researcher visas, as well as the ever-popular Voice of the Future and STEM for Britain events. All in all, Westminster has provided an exciting opportunity for Biochemical Society members to spend time in Parliament during this dramatic week. Here are some of the highlights. A more detailed article can be found on the Biochemist blog.
This unique event was held on Tuesday, and turned the tables on MPs and ministers, requiring them to answer questions from students and early career researchers from across STEM disciplines in Select Committee style. We were represented by six biochemists from across the UK. Topics of discussion inevitably included Brexit, alongside air pollution, research funding and widening participation both in research and politics. Several of the panellists emphasised the importance of researchers engaging with politicians. For more details on the event, see this article by the Royal Society of Biology, or you can listen to a recording on Parliament TV.
On Wednesday, the annual STEM for Britain poster competition took place. This event is the largest activity that brings scientific research directly into the Houses of Parliament and gives MPs the chance to meet with their constituents and other young researchers to hear about their work.
For a full list of winners see the STEM for Britain website, or check out #STEM4BRIT19 on twitter.
Wednesday also saw Philip Hammond give his Spring Statement, in which the exemption of PhD-level occupations from the cap on high-skilled visas from Autumn 2019 was announced. In addition, field-research performed overseas will count as UK residence and can therefore be used by researchers applying for settlement in the UK (Indefinite Leave to Remain).
The Campaign for Science and Engineering (CaSE) have been leading the way in calling for these changes. Last year the Biochemical Society co-signed their letter to the Prime Minister with 44 other organisations calling for the removal of the Tier 2 visa cap.
Also announced in yesterday’s statement was the news that the £700 million package of reforms announced in 2018 to help small firms take on more apprentices will be brought forward to the start of the new financial year.
As the 29 March approaches, here is a brief summary of what happened this week.
Wednesday: Parliament voted to avoid the UK exiting the EU. However, it’s important to remember that while it may be influential, this vote was not legally binding and therefore No-Deal remains the legal default unless either a deal or an extension to Article 50 is agreed.
Thursday: MPs voted in favour of extending Article 50.
The impact on science and innovation of a No-Deal Brexit was highlighted in a recent consultation by the Science and Technology Committee, to which we fed into RSB’s response. CaSE have also done lots of work looking at the impact of Brexit on science and engineering in the UK.
We remain committed to representing the molecular bioscience community in parliament and highlighting the importance of continued close collaboration as Britain prepares to leave the EU. To help us with our work, please get in touch with your experiences. We are particularly interested in any case-studies involving international collaboration.
To hear more about our policy work, and to have the opportunity to feed into our consultation responses join our Policy Network. For more information see our Policy page.