Nobel prize winners warn leaving EU poses 'risk' to science

Leaving the EU poses a "key risk" to British science, a group of 13 Nobel prize-winning scientists have warned.

The group, which includes Peter Higgs, who predicted the existence of the Higgs boson particle, and geneticist Sir Paul Nurse, say losing EU funding would put UK research "in jeopardy".

"Inside the EU, Britain helps steer the biggest scientific powerhouse in the world", the group claim.

Vote Leave said it was a "myth" that funding came from Brussels.

'Critical mass'

In a letter to the Daily Telegraph the group said science should be "front and centre in the EU debate" as it was a key driver in health, innovation and economic growth.

"The EU contains a critical mass of expertise, with more than one in five of the world's researchers moving freely within its boundaries.

"EU decisions about scientific policy, funding and regulatory frameworks affect science the world over, and are influenced by British scientists. On the inside, Britain has access to people and funding and wields global scientific influence, far greater than we have alone."The signatories also include Sir Martin Evans, the chancellor of Cardiff University who was awarded for his work into stem cells, and Sir Andre Geim who won a Nobel prize for groundbreaking work on graphene, a material expected to revolutionise manufacturing.

Contingency plans

The letter comes as MPs urged ministers to draw up contingency plans to protect the UK's science sector in the event of a vote to leave the EU on 23 June.

The Commons Science and Technology Committee said the UK benefited "significantly" from access to EU research budgets and would have to seek other sources for funding if it was withdrawn.

It highlighted the "cautionary example" of Switzerland, which was denied access to science funding programmes when the EU imposed sanctions in response to a vote to curtail the freedom of movement.

Committee chairman Nicola Blackwood said: "In light of this, the government must conduct a risk analysis of the impact that a vote to leave would have on science funding and international collaboration."

The committee - which includes supporters of both Leave and Remain - did not come down on either side in the debate, noting that there were both benefits and costs to the UK science sector from EU membership.

It comes after Prof Stephen Hawking said Brexit would be a "disaster for UK science".

But a group of researchers arguing the case for an EU exit disagreed saying Britain would be no worse off on the outside.

Prof Angus Dalgleish from the University of London and a spokesman for "Scientists For Britain" said: "We are standing up against what is a very large body of people who feel that if we leave the EU it will be a disaster for funding and collaboration - and we completely refute that," he said.