PROFESSOR COLIN BLAKEMORE, PROFESSOR IAN DIAMOND, PROFESSOR KEITH MASON AND DR RANDAL RICHARDS

9 MAY 2007

  Q100  Linda Gilroy: Finally, you have said that there are other mechanisms to encourage UK researchers to be mobile. Some of them have come out in the course of the earlier questions. Are there ones that you finally want to make sure that we are aware of in the context of today's session and how might we encourage more UK researchers to go abroad to non-English speaking countries? Are there barriers at the moment?

  Dr Richards: I do not think there are barriers. I think that all research councils have various vehicles—overseas travel grants—which enable people to go there. I think the germane question is what is the drive for them to go there? Rather than just force them to go what is the strategic reason for getting that engagement? I would say it is to gain new knowledge; it is to gain expertise, to get research collaborations going in particular areas.

  Q101  Linda Gilroy: Presumably again in those areas where we need more capacity and areas where we have strengths.

  Dr Richards: Exactly or where they have a particular perspective on the research, which we do not have in the UK, to try and bring that knowledge back into the UK.

  Professor Diamond: I think the one thing that we have said to you is that these are areas—for example, the international reviews that the EPSRC do—where we are really taking an active role to identify areas where capacity is needed and then we strategically use funding to say how are we going to address this particular issue.

  Q102  Linda Gilroy: To return to a point made earlier about whether there is sufficient government input into identifying those areas where we may need to make up for any global competitiveness issues, is there enough of that?

  Dr Richards: It is increasingly caused by the formation of the Technology Strategy Board, which is becoming an arm's length body. I think that can take on some of that role from that point of view, but then it is for other bodies to get the joined-upness that Ian referred to earlier that we all want to see and provide the information to the research councils, to point out, "Look, in five years' time we are going to need these sets of skills, can you get cracking on it now, please?" It is that sort of joined-upness that we need.

  Chairman: Could I therefore bring this session to a close and to thank Professor Blakemore, Professor Diamond, Professor Mason and Dr Richards for your interesting comments this morning? Thank you very much indeed and thanks to my Committee.