Engineering news
Prime minister Boris Johnson announced a new fast-track visa scheme to attract the world’s top scientists, researchers and mathematicians today (27 January).
The Global Talent ‘route’ will have no cap on the number of people using it and will open on 20 February. It will replace the Tier 1 Exceptional Talent visa. UK Research and Innovation will endorse applicants from the scientific and research community for the first time.
“What the research community was worried about, with Brexit, was losing out on research funding and making it more difficult to recruit overseas researchers. This is one initiative that will go some way to address that,” said IMechE adviser Matt Rooney.
“It was part of the official leave campaign that leaving the EU would allow the UK to attract the best and brightest from around the world. The government is trying to show the UK is actually doing that.”
The Global Talent visa will retain and expand elements of the Tier 1 route, while introducing a new pathway for individuals working on a research grant awarded by an ‘endorsed funder’. It includes an exemption from the absences rules for researchers and their dependants when they are required overseas for work-related purposes, ensuring they are not penalised when they apply for settlement.
The government said there will be double the number of eligible fellowships, from organisations including the European Research Council, which also enable individuals to be fast tracked.
The visa reforms coincided with up to £300m of new government funding for “experimental and imaginative” mathematical science research by the best global talent over the next five years. The money aims to ensure the UK remains at the cutting-edge and underpins real-world technological developments, such as smoother traffic flow, safer air travel and greener energy systems.
“The UK gets more funding in science than it puts in to the EU,” said Rooney. “Scientific research is a global endeavour, so we in the UK need to be as open as possible… if we don’t do that, the research funds will simply move elsewhere.”
The Royal Academy of Engineering worked with the Home Office to develop the Global Talent visa. President Sir Jim McDonald said: “International talent makes a vital contribution to British engineering, both in academia and in industry, and plays an important role in making the UK an attractive destination for investment. The need for international expertise and collaboration grows ever more important as we look for solutions to the global challenges we face, from sustainable resources for a world population heading for 10bn people, to implementing the benefits of AI and digital technologies.”
In the official announcement, the prime minister said: “The UK has a proud history of scientific discovery, but to lead the field and face the challenges of the future we need to continue to invest in talent and cutting-edge research. That is why as we leave the EU I want to send a message that the UK is open to the most talented minds in the world, and stand ready to support them to turn their ideas into reality.”
The announcement also included plans for a major review of research bureaucracy and methods, including unnecessary paperwork, arduous funding applications and research selection processes, aimed at freeing up and supporting researchers to focus on “ground-breaking, ambitious and meaningful research that goes on to cure diseases or improve our transport networks.”
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