Britain’s scientists must not be gagged

A ban on state-funded academics using their work to question government policy is to begin on 1 May. It's either a cock-up or a conspiracy

Unless government officials make a major U-turn in the next few days, many British scientists will soon be blocked from speaking out on key issues affecting the UK - from climate change to embryo research and from animal experiments to flood defences. This startling, and highly controversial, state of affairs follows a Cabinet Office decision, revealed by the Observer in February, that researchers who receive government grants will be banned, as of 1 May, from using the results of their work to lobby for changes in laws or regulations.

The aim of the Cabinet Office edict was to stop NGOs from lobbying politicians and Whitehall departments using the government's own funds. The effect, say senior scientists, campaigners and research groups, will be to muzzle scientists from speaking out on important issues. The government move is a straightforward assault on academic freedom, they argue.

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