MP Hannah Spencer has written to Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds to question whether the government's assurances about Jodrell Bank's future are consistent with other ministerial statements.
In her letter, the MP for Gorton and Denton points out that while the government claims it is working to secure Jodrell Bank's long-term future, other ministers have said that the University of Manchester needs to find its own funding. Ms Spencer argues that this mixed message suggests the facility's future is not actually guaranteed.
Government exploring options for UK's largest telescope
In October, when asked for an update in Parliament by Ms Spencer, Mr Reynolds confirmed that the government is "exploring" long-term options for the UK's largest telescope. He said he had met with representatives from the University of Manchester, which runs the project, in the hope of finding a solution.
The update followed the Manchester Evening News campaign to save Jodrell Bank, which amassed over 10,600 signatures. UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) said in July this year that the observatory will not be prioritised for further funding after its current agreement ends in March 2028. The annual grant to the facility is worth some £2.8m a year.
Funding cut would end Lovell Telescope as active instrument
Bosses at the University of Manchester said the funding cut would mean the end of the Lovell Telescope as an "active scientific instrument for radio astronomy" and the loss of 28 jobs employed by the e-Merlin grant.
Ms Spencer, Green MP for Gorton and Denton, has responded further to Mr Reynolds' comments. In her letter to the Business Secretary, she has questioned ministers' claim that the withdrawing funding from e-MERLIN is "science-based" and "evidence-led".
MP raises five questions on financial support and scientific functions
Ms Spencer writes: "I do welcome the Government's repeated assurances that Jodrell Bank has a secure future. However, I am concerned by the apparent difference between your assertion that the Government is exploring options for Jodrell Bank's long-term sustainability and statements by Ministers that just say that the University of Manchester is exploring alternative funding arrangements. This does not amount to a secure future."
Her five questions to the government include what financial support it will provide, which scientific functions will be lost, and how specialist staff and international commitments will be protected.
"The public rightly values Jodrell Bank as an extraordinary part of our national heritage," she continues. "But the scientists I have spoken to are concerned about something equally important: the discoveries that will never be made if we let its scientific capabilities disappear. This will have a dramatic knock-on effect on the scientists of tomorrow, too: the reason that school trips to Jodrell Bank are so impactful, is because it is a live scientific site. That impact will be lessened if the science is stripped away, depriving younger and future generations of the inspiration to pursue a career in science, which will in turn deprive us of possibly transformative discoveries."
