Global BUzz

As the referendum approaches in the UK, be prepared to see plenty of articles, debates, reports, and statements from various individuals and organisations supporting either side.  Most likely, it would be easier to vote for the side you already believe in, but it is ever so more important to explore, research and be aware of both sides of the debate. This decision will shape the future.  For the UK, for Europe, for the world – including all sectors and services of that future.  It will not be a straight forward issue, simply because so many emotive concerns and views will drive judgements and arguments.

This week, Weekly Focus has decided to present two articles written by Times Higher Education: Brexit would be ‘catastrophe’ for HE in Europe, warn Germans (published 03.03.16) and Brexit: the perks and pitfalls for higher education (published 16.07.15).

They are interesting articles as they give insight into what perceptions are held outside of the UK, which makes for an important angle.  After all, negotiations – should the UK decide to leave –  will be based on what the EU is willing to accept and not simply by what the UK is eager to demand.

The former article quotes president of the German Rectors’ Conference, Horst Hippler:

“To have Britain no longer belonging to the EU would be a disaster for international research in Europe…When you’re no longer a member and just want to do some ‘raisin picking’, there will be a problem”.

In Professor Hippler’s conversation with THE, his concerns focuses on ‘barriers’, in the form of exchange, or mobility by way of introducing visas.  This is one of the dilemmas about the debate, which leaves voters in a difficult position.  Without the fear-mongering from both sides, where will the UK sit with its decision? What will the negotiations decide for the UK’s relationship with the EU?

The fact is that ‘no EU nation has ever gone from full member status to being an “associated country” (THE, 2015).  Some interesting extracts from the 2015 article are presented below:

Prof Jose Manuel Barroso (president of the EC (2004-2014) & visiting professor at Princeton University: 

“It’s one of the greatest things of Britain, this openness to the world…It [is] beneficial to have so many people, some of the brightest people around the world, in the British system. What that brings in terms of the so-called soft power of Britain is immense…You have to really be a very narrow nationalistic or chauvinistic person not to consider how important this is to Britain. It’s one of the countries that has the highest soft power in the world – thanks to the universities, to a large extent.”

‘He calls Europe the “most advanced” region in the world, “even more than the US, in terms of student and faculty mobility”. “I believe that if the UK is no longer a member of the EU, there will certainly be a loss of research funding, a loss of EU and [global] research networks”, he says, citing EU-funded projects that create cooperation between researchers in Europe, the Americas and Asia. There would also be “damage to faculty and student mobility”’ (TEF, 2015).

Prof Alison Wolf (Kings College):

‘“Universities UK is there to protect the self-interest of the university sector.” The idea that the impact of EU membership on universities should be something that swings the referendum campaign one way or the other “shows how narrowly sectional our view has become as universities”’

‘…there are “all sorts of good reasons for staying in the EU – but preserving university teaching and university research money cannot be one of the most important ones”.  The UK “pays a great deal out for research, we get maybe slightly more back in return but not much, there are lots of administrative overheads…If we’re no longer paying into the EU research fund, it beggars belief that it won’t get paid into a British research fund.”’ (TEF, 2015).

Mike Galsworthy (co-founder of Scientists for EU): 

“As an associated country, the UK would have a much diminished say in the shape of that programme…I would hope that a ‘no’ vote would have little impact on the UK’s participation in the Horizon 2020 programme. This is unless, of course, the UK decides to put down immediate and aggressive anti-immigration rules. In which case there would likely be harsh renegotiation around Erasmus+ [the EU’s student and staff mobility programme, see Bologna and Erasmus: the impact on the UK box below] and Horizon 2020 terms of engagement.”

Where the UK will sit with the freedom of movement is a key factor in our relationship with the EU.  It is, after all, a pillar to what the EU project is about, to the single market, and to being an innovative competitive network which supports the flow of talent across Europe.  Although the economy seems to be a main focus of the debate, it seems more convoluted: i.e. the UK pays a membership fee to the EU but the UK borrow significant amounts from the European Central Bank; the UK gets billions in research grants from the EU but would an alternative national strategy prove productive and competitive?; the UK taxpayer subsidises EU students who do not pay back student loans but the UK economy thrives off students contributing to the community…

The article points the reader to the Government’s 2012 review of the EU competences  which was published under the Coalition government.  It explores ‘what the EU does and how it affects the UK’ to provide ‘a clear sense of how our national interests interact with the EU’s roles…’.  The review – over the course of 4 semesters – launched calls for evidence to respond to a series of questions.

‘UUK and the UK HE International Unit say in their submission to the balance of competences review that international collaborations “encourage excellence by bringing together the most outstanding researchers in the field, provide opportunities to share best practice across partner institutions, provide access to international facilities and large international datasets and tend to result in high publication and citation rates”’ (TEF, 2015).

If the HE sector are going to make a strong impact in this discussion, however, we will need to develop discussion to what this decision will mean to the UK in its entirety, rather than HE alone.

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It is also worth reading UK Universities Minister Jo Johnson’s article on what it would mean for the UK’s status as a science superpower should we leave Europe.