Government unveils elite scientist scheme
Monday, 23 Oct 2006 17:28
Trade and industry secretary Alistair Darling will unveil the science scholarship scheme tonight
A new initiative designed to attract the world's most talented scientists to the UK will later be launched by the government.
The Rhodes scholarship-style scheme will see researchers work and share knowledge in Britain, and then create a ready-made international network upon returning to their native countries.
Trade and industry secretary Alistair Darling will tonight unveil the project at the Royal Society, the scientific academy that will play host to the scholarships.
Mr Darling wants to attract more high-level scientists to Britain to consolidate and expand its burgeoning reputation as a "centre of world-class research".
He will say that the Royal Society International Fellowship Scheme would be established with a £100 million grant of existing funds.
"Science has been one of Britain's best kept secrets," the minister will tell delegates later today.
"I want to change that. To be the best you need to work with the best. This new scheme aims to attract more of the best in science to Britain. It will push our world-class science base further and help give us a business edge."
Government research claims that British universities are closing the gap on their US counterparts in terms of successfully linking scientific and business interest.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) says that UK-based academic institutions produce 1.3 patents for every £10 million of research, compared to the 1.6 of their counterparts across the Atlantic.
In addition, the government has revealed that in the last three years, spin-off companies from British universities have floated on the stock market collectively for more than £1.5 billion.
Mr Darling will later tell the Royal Society that the only way for Britain to prosper in the global economy is to be at the "forefront of innovation and invention".
According to DTI statistics, the UK's creative industries generate eight per cent of the country's GDP, a higher proportion than anywhere else in the world.