Effects of Brexit on science and technology

The effects of Brexit on science and technology include prospective changes to current arrangements related to scientific research, development and innovation that are within the scope of the negotiation between the United Kingdom and the European Union prior to .
When the was passed in March 2017, the terms of Britain's disengagement were unknown. The outlook was uncertain for patent protection of innovation and for the future funding of scientific research, and opinions differed on whether scientific research and development would be affected by a loss of mobility and international collaboration, or whether Britain's withdrawal from the European Union (EU) should be seen as an opportunity to expand scientific collaboration.
Background
Negotiating policy
Following the 2016 referendum vote to leave the European Union, the UK government started the withdrawal process on 29 March 2017, to begin negotiating the future arrangements which would have effect after the withdrawal.
The government's negotiating policy at that time was stated in a white paper, published in February 2017, The United Kingdom’s exit from and new partnership with the European Union, that explicitly mentioned remaining at the vanguard of science and innovation and seeking continued close collaboration with the UK's European partners. The white paper mentioned in more general terms: controlling the number of EU nationals coming to the UK; securing the status of EU citizens who are already living in the UK, and that of UK nationals in other member states; protecting and enhancing existing workers’ rights; forging a new partnership with the EU, including a wide reaching free trade agreement, and seeking a mutually beneficial new customs agreement with the EU; and forging free trade relationships across the world.
From the beginning, policy requirements influencing or determining the withdrawal negotiation were expressed in the Preamble and Articles of the Treaty on European Union (TEU). Article 3 mentions the promotion of "scientific and technological advance" in a context governed by the Union's aims for an internal market, and a highly competitive social market economy. A policy requirement mentioned in the Preamble is promoting economic and social progress for the peoples of the EU member states, taking into account the principle of sustainable development and within the context of the accomplishment of the internal market and of reinforced cohesion and environmental protection.
Human resources in science and engineering
About 32 000 non-British EU academics occupy 17% of UK university teaching and research posts.
Over the period 2008-2014, the UK produced 15% of the world's most highly cited articles for a share of just 4% of the global research pool.
Funding of research in science and engineering
Britain's overall research intensity, measured as a percentage of gross domestic product, is comparatively low: 1.63% of GDP in 2013, compared to the EU average of 2.02%. The UK's business enterprise sector performs two-thirds of the total. In 2015, Britain's scientific establishment expressed concern that 'UK investment in research was failing to keep pace with other leading nations and risks eroding the capacity to attract and retain the very best researchers from the UK and overseas'.
As an EU member state, the UK participates in the European Research Area. All EU members contribute to the budget for each seven-year framework programme for research and innovation, the most recent of these being Horizon 2020, adopted in 2014. British researchers receive EU funding through programmes like Horizon 2020. Access to this money will now be renegotiated with the EU.
Once it is no longer a member state, the UK will no longer be entitled to EU structural funds, which are increasingly being used to finance research-related infrastructure. The withdrawal from the EU may also incite some international firms to scale down their plans to invest in research and development in the UK.
British universities are disproportionately successful at winning EU-awarded research grants. For instance, in 2013, the UK received more competitive research grants (close to 1000) from the European Research Council (ERC) than any other EU country; 44% of these grants went to non-nationals based in the UK, the largest number of any EU country. Germany obtained just over 600 ERC grants.This has raised questions about how such funding would be affected by a Brexit.
On average, British universities relied on the EU for around 11% of their research income in 2014-2015. Two-thirds (66%) came from government sources, 4% from British businesses, 13% from British charities and 5% from sources beyond the EU. The EU share can be much higher for the top research universities. For instance, in 2013, the University of Manchester successfully applied for £23 million from the European Regional Development Fund to create a National Graphene Institute. The UK's Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Unit provided a further £38 million. The University of Manchester is participating in the two flagship projects selected for €1 billion in funding under Horizon 2020's Future and Emerging Technologies programme, namely the graphene project and the human brain project. The chancellor of the University of Oxford, Chris Patten, said in July 2016 that the university received about 40% of its research income from government and that its 'research income will of course fall significantly after we have left the EU unless a Brexit government guarantees to cover the shortfall'.
On 21 November 2016, Prime Minister Theresa May announced an increase in government investment in research and development worth £2 billion a year by 2020 and a new Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund to back priority technologies.
On 23 February 2017, the Business Secretary announced a £229 million investment in research and development within the government's new industrial strategy, which is being developed in consultation with stakeholder groups. Of this investment, £126 million is to go towards the creation of 'the world-class' National Graphene Institute at the University of Manchester, graphene having been first isolated at this university in 2004, and £103 million to create a new centre of excellence for life and physical sciences at the Rosalind Franklin Institute in Oxford, which will foster ties between academia and industry.
British participation in European institutions
Unified Patent Court
EU companies currently need to file for patent protection in all 28 member states. The unitary patent package adopted by 25 EU members in 2013 (all but Croatia, Italy and Spain) is expected to slash procedural fees and translation costs by 85%. The unitary patent package will only apply, however, once the Agreement on a Unified Patent Court enters into force. including Italy. Britain was not one of them.
British judges were heavily involved in developing the procedures for the Unified Patent Court. When it was decided that the Unified Patent Court would be split into three locations, Prime Minister David Cameron 'succeeded in making sure that one of them - which will rule on pharmaceuticals and life sciences - was in London'. The UK has developed a reputation as a key hub in this area and already hosts the European Medicines Agency.
Normally, members of the new patent court must also be EU members. Even if the European Commission could be persuaded to ignore this requirement, the UK would have to remain a member of the European Court of Justice (ECJ). This is not because the patent court would be a conduit for EU law into Britain but because the patent court would occasionally have to refer to the ECJ on matters of European law when assessing patent cases, in order to know which definition to adopt.
Specialized European agencies
The European Medicines Agency, which licenses new drugs, is based in London. This is one of several European agencies which support EU Member States and their citizens. These agencies may be responsible for enforcing particular regulatory regimes, or for pooling knowledge and sharing information. Examples are the European Chemicals Agency based in Finland, the European Aviation Safety Agency based in Germany, the European Space Agency based in France and the European Food Safety Authority based in Italy. There are also three European Supervisory Authorities which are responsible for oversight in the field of financial services. One of the three is based in London, the European Banking Authority.
In its Brexit white paper of February 2017, the British government stated that, 'as part of exit negotiations, the government will discuss with the EU and Member States our future status and arrangements with regard to these agencies'. Of this, €424 million has been earmarked for EUROfusion, a consortium of universities and national laboratories, primarily for ITER-related research. A further €283 million will go to the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy, the UK's national laboratory for fusion research.The Culham Centre hosts the world's largest magnetic fusion experiment, Joint European Torus (JET), on behalf of its European partners. The JET facilities are used by about 350 European fusion scientists each year.
Research is not the only focus of Euratom. As stated in the government's Brexit white paper, 'the Euratom Treaty provides the legal framework for civil nuclear power generation and radioactive waste management for members of the Euratom Community, all of whom are EU Member States. This includes arrangements for nuclear safeguards, safety and the movement and trade of nuclear materials both between Euratom Members such as France and the UK, as well as between Euratom Members and third countries such as the USA'. Pro-remain scientists set up a website in 2015.
In a press release of 18 November 2016, Scientists for the EU welcomed the report's recommendations but regretted that it portrayed research collaborations beyond the EU as an opportunity of Brexit. 'EU membership has never restricted UK science collaborations outside the EU', the press release stated. 'Rather, EU membership has enhanced UK global outreach via its world-leading programme'. Commenting on the press release, Martin Yuille, Co-Director of the Centre for Integrated Genomic Medical Research in Manchester, said that 'Brexit will not enhance opportunities for collaboration beyond the EU because, as an EU Member State, we already benefit from the global collaboration framework developed over the decades by the EU. The EU has Science and Technology Agreements with 20 countries (including the major economies) and is preparing similar agreements with further countries and regional groupings (e.g. the whole of Africa and the Pacific Rim). The EU is developing a permanent structure of scientific and technological collaboration with 180 countries. All that will need to be replaced by a UK outside the EU'.
Concerns over future funding of research
A July 2016 investigation by The Guardian suggested that some UK researchers were being discriminated against in funding and research projects after the referendum result. The newspaper reported that European partners were reluctant to employ British researchers due to uncertainties over funding. It cited a confidential survey of the UK's Russell Group universities, a group of 24 institutions renowned for research and academic excellence; in one case, 'an EU project officer recommended that a lead investigator drop all UK partners from a consortium because Britain's share of funding could not be guaranteed'. The uncertainty over future funding for projects stands to harm research in other ways, the same survey suggests. A number of institutions that responded said some researchers were reluctant to carry on with bids for EU funds because of the financial unknowns, while others did not want to be the weak link in a consortium. One university said it had serious concerns about its ability to recruit research fellows for current projects.
Concerns over future market access
After the British referendum in June 2016, Carlos Ghosn, Chief Executive Officer of Japanese vehicle manufacturer Nissan, expressed doubts about the company's future in the UK if the country left the single market. After receiving written assurances from the government, Ghosn confirmed in October 2016 that its Qashqai and X-Trail SUV ranges would be built at its Sunderland plant but added that the firm would want to 're-evaluate the situation' once the final Brexit deal was concluded.
The Business Secretary told the House of Commons on 31 October 2016 that the government had assured Nissan that it would continue its longstanding programme of support for the competitiveness of the automotive sector, work with the automotive sector to ensure that more of the supply chain could locate to the UK and maintain a strong commitment to research and development into ultra-low emission vehicles. He also said that, in its negotiations to leave the EU, the government would ensure that trade between the UK and EU member states was 'free and unencumbered'.

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