[GOAL] Open access and Brexit

[Richard Poynder]

The UK research community’s response to the recent referendum – in which a
majority of 52% voted for the UK to leave the European Union (or “Brexit”) –
has been one of horror and disbelief.

 

This is no surprise, not least because Brexit would have a serious impact on
research funding in the UK. Nature reports that UK universities currently
get around 16% of their research funding from the EU, and that the UK
currently hosts more EU-funded holders of ERC grants than any other member
state. Elsewhere, Digital Science has estimated that the UK could lose £1
billion in science funding if the UK government does not make up the
shortfall in EU-linked research funds.

 

But what are the implications of Brexit for open access? Given the highly
volatile situation the UK now finds itself in we cannot say anything for
certain. However, any squeeze on funding will surely be detrimental to
current plans to migrate scholarly publishing from a subscription to an open
access system.

 

With these thoughts in mind I put some questions to long-time proponent of
open access, and Professor of Structural Biology at Imperial College London,
Stephen Curry. His thoughts on the topic can be read here:

 

http://poynder.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/open-access-and-brexit.html

 

Richard Poynder

 

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