Dear all,
Please find below a message from John Coxon (Southampton University) that originally appeared on the MIST mailing list. It was sent in response to encouragement from the RAS for us to contact our local MPs to try and get them to understand the dangerous effects of the likely inflation-eroded allocation of money to science in the next Comprehensive Spending Review. This stands in stark contrast to the recommendation of the House of Commons Committee on Science & Technology, as you’ll see. The advice below is reproduced with John’s kind permission.
We strongly request that all UKSP members use this advice. Your MP is there to represent you as much as anyone else. The sooner that you can write to them, the better, as well.
Kind regards,
Dave & Philippa.
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Hi everyone,
As many members of the MIST community will have seen, the RAS has asked its Fellows to write to MPs ahead of the announcement of George Osborne’s Comprehensive Spending Review, as there have been rumours that it will lead to cuts in spending. Recently, the Minister for Universities and Science (Jo Johnson MP) was allegedly quoted as saying that the best the science community can expect is a flat cash science budget*, which would be a cut in real terms and leave the UK even further behind the rest of the G8 in science funding. Recently, the House of Commons’ committee on science and technology recommended that the Government increase science spending to 3% of GDP** in order to counteract the UK’s gradual international decline.
** http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201516/cmselect/cmsctech/340/340.pdf
As a result, MIST council would like to encourage members of the community to contact their local MPs. We believe that MPs should know that there is opposition to further real-terms cuts to science funding, and that there is support for increased science funding. An easy way to contact your local MP is to use http://www.writetothem.com/, which will allow you to send an email to your local MP.
Some tips for this letter to your local MP:
– write from your personal email/postal address, not from a work address
– don’t email anyone other than your elected officials
– mention that you are affiliated with the RAS and with MIST/similar organisations
– cite the House of Commons committee recommendation and highlight the fact that the UK risks falling behind the rest of the G8
– mention why research (both generally, and your research specifically) is important (space weather is on the National Risk Register, etc)
– say that you oppose any cuts proposed in the Comprehensive Spending Review
– say that you support the HoC committee’s recommendation to increase science spending, rather than cutting it
Thank you in advance, and here’s hoping for a sensible position on science in the CSR!
John
—
Dr John Coxon
Postdoctoral Researcher
Space Environment Physics Group
Department of Physics and Astronomy
University of Southampton
Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK