University makes strong case for continued EU engagement

The need for Southampton academics to continue applying for EU research grants has been underlined in the University’s submission to a government inquiry assessing the implications and opportunities for UK science and research following the country’s referendum vote to leave the EU.

The submission, made recently to the House of Commons Select Committee on Science and Technology, outlines the many ways in which the University benefits from EU-related activities:

• 1,700 (33%) of research articles published by Southampton authors in 2015 had co-authors based in EU countries;
• The University was awarded 318 successful projects worth 125M Euros through the EU’s 7^th Framework Project (FP7). Under FP7, Southampton ranked 10^th amongst UK universities and 17^th in the EU for funding from such sources;
• The University’s engagement in Horizon 2020 has resulted in 74 projects awarded or in negotiation to date, worth 48.9M Euros

The submission goes on to emphasise that access to funding from Europe has enabled the University to engage in pan-European projects that have accelerated the development of new knowledge and innovation.

The University is also engaging with Universities UK, the Research UK Office in Brussels and the EU Advisory Group of Russell Group Universities to further influence discussions to secure European funding for Southampton research.

Europe still offers a wide range of opportunities for research and collaboration.  The latest round of European Research Council Advanced Grants shows there is a high level of interest across our research community with a total of 12 applications submitted from the University.  The University would like to encourage colleagues to continue applying for EU grants as a way of strengthening our position and maintaining our profile when it is time to negotiate for active participation in European research and development programmes, post-Brexit.

The University’s EU Office will continue to play a facilitation role for Southampton’s research community during the current period of uncertainty and to assist with all bids and contracts related to EU collaboration and funding. Please email [email protected] for advice and further assistance.