Dominic Cummings joins the Hunt for #MathsMissingMillions
Whatever you may feel about him, we know Dominic Cummings doesn’t do things by half. So when he got wind last week that the government might be set to roll back on a previous pledge on extra maths funding, he angrily accused them of ‘vandalism of critical national capabilities’.
We’re delighted to welcome the former Number 10 guru to the search party desperate to know if and when the government will deliver the remaining £176 million in additional funding for the mathematical sciences.
What is #MathsMissingMillions ?
In January 2020, the UK Government announced that it would be allocating £300 million of additional funding to “fund experimental and imaginative mathematical sciences research by the very best global talent over the next five years”. However, more than half of this funding is yet to materialise.
Dominic Cummings's tweet followed Lord Callanan’s respone to a question tabled by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath in the House of Lord. The question was prompted by PPM. The Minister’s answer suggested that the rest of the £300 million – an outstanding balance of £176 million - may not be forthcoming. That’s bad news for the mathematical sciences and for the country. The research funded by #MathsMissingMillions could unlock answers to our most pressing policy problems, including the cost of living crisis and energy supply.
How have people responded?
Commenting on this development, Labour’s Shadow Science Minister, Chi Onwurah MP, told Research Professional News that “this is yet another broken promise demonstrating once again that this government just aren’t serious about science. The Tories have politicalised Stem funding, whilst rolling back on their manifesto commitments and slashing international science support”.
The Times also published an article in response to this development. Marcus du Sautoy, Simonyi Professor for the Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University, told Tom Whipple, the Science Editor, that not delivering the additional funding would be “foolish and short sighted”.
What can I do to help?
We need your help to make sure that the Government keeps its promises. You can get involved by:
Writing to your MP using the template below. You can find out who your local MP is here: https://members.parliament.uk/FindYourMP.
Retweeting Dominic Cummings' tweet to show your own shared frustration and join the Hunt for #MathsMissingMillions
Sharing the joining link to others who would like to support the campaign and receive similar updates
Dear [MP Name],
I am contacting you as a supporter of the Protect Pure Maths campaign [provide some personal background as appropriate].
In January 2020, the Government announced an investment of £300m additional funding into the mathematical sciences.
However, Lord Callanan's recent response to a written question in the House of Lords has suggested that whilst £124 million has been allocated to the mathematical sciences, the remaining £176 million will not be delivered as promised.
Mathematics enables today’s most exciting and urgent technological developments, including artificial intelligence, driverless cars, the development of quantum computers, and superfast broadband. Maths underpins national security and the finance sector, and it has been vital to modelling the Covid-19 outbreak and the rollout of vaccinations. Without explicit support for all the mathematical sciences, this will be at risk.
I would be extremely grateful if you could commit to tabling a debate or an oral question to BEIS calling on this investment to be reaffirmed. I would be very grateful for any feedback on your discussions with colleagues on this matter.
Yours sincerely,
[Name]