Volume 1

International policies and activities of the Research Councils / House of Commons, Science and Technology Committee.

  • Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Select Committee on Science and Technology.
Date:
2007
Catalogue details

Licence: Open Government Licence

Credit: International policies and activities of the Research Councils / House of Commons, Science and Technology Committee. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    high-level visits that he undertakes to other countries, Professor Sir Keith O’Nions, Director General of Science and Innovation, told us that “It is very difficult to quantify the value of visits, but you know how much you lose if you do not make them.” 12. The statistics quoted by the different Research Councils demonstrate that they do not have a consistent approach to measuring their performance in relation to international activities. MRC, for example, referred to the number of people involved in projects, telling us that of approximately 950 current active research grants to University-based researchers, about one third report international co-applicants or collaborators.'? In contrast, the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) focused upon publications stating that approximately 38% of ISI (Thomson Scientific) publications arising from NERC funding in 2005 had one or more overseas co-authors.” The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) employed another approach, concentrating primarily upon the money that it had invested in various international schemes.’! 13. The Royal Society and FCO both criticise the Research Councils for the lack of information that they gather regarding their international activities. The Royal Society argues that “Many of the RCs [Research Councils] lack mechanisms for recording information about international collaboration, and it is therefore difficult to quantify the amount of international collaboration which they support.”” The FCO states that “it can be difficult to obtain comprehensive data on the amount of collaborative funding the UK has with a specific country”.” 14. In relation to this lack of information, Professor Sir Keith O’Nions told us that: Research Councils do not [...] at the present time systematically collect data on international collaboration that is funded by them. [...] the Research Councils are considering developing a common approach to the collection of information regarding the international dimension of funded research. The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills will continue to work with the Councils in developing such an approach.” 15. We believe that it is important for the UK to be able to assess its position and measure its success with regard to international collaboration and international research relationships. We recommend that the Research Councils and the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills work together to develop common mechanisms for the systematic collection of data on international collaborations and to develop ways of assessing their performance in this field. 18 Q255 19 Ev 129 20 Ev 135 21 Ev 111-112 22 Ev60 23 Ev 54 24 Ev 168