gair rhydd y
In this week’s issue: the state of LGBT+ rights in Europe, the NUS’ fitness for purpose, what life after graduation will really be like, and what fashionable diets are doing to you
Monday May 25th 2015 | freeword | Issue 1055
Tributes paid to Talybont student SEE PAGE 7
Research funding endangered by MEDIC Forward t British Heart Foundation award on hold due to ongoing MEDIC Forward consultation t Cardiology research branded “unsustainable” despite massive charity investment EXCLUSIVE Michael O’ConnellDavidson
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ne of the British Heart Foundation’s “leading lights” has been targeted for disinvestment, Gair Rhydd can reveal. Professor Alan Williams and his parent department, Ionic Cell Signalling, are considered to be at risk despite Williams receiving significant grants from the British Heart Foundation. Though the exact figure is unconfirmed, the latest grant (or ‘award’, as it is described by the BHF) is reported to be approximately one million pounds. This news comes just one week after Gair Rhydd revealed that up to 69 members of academic staff are set to be made redundant as part of MEDIC Forward, Cardiff University’s controversial plan to restructure the School of Medicine. MEDIC Forward has attracted criticism from
staff, students, and the University and College Union (UCU) for being who have expressed their “grave concerns” with the project. In a report issued to the University Council, one of Cardiff University’s governing bodies, the UCU stated that MEDIC Forward was a “poorlydisguised exercise in removing from the School people who are outside the major areas favoured by the ‘primary influencers’”. The UCU further stated that the proposals “present a real risk of reputational damage to Cardiff University [...] to say nothing of the impact on the staff involved”. MEDIC Forward has described some departments, such as Williams’ as ‘unsustainable’, despite those same departments attracting millions of pounds in research grants.
It is understood that the Medical School needs to approve the million-pound grant before it can be awarded, but this has yet to happen because the consultation period for MEDIC Forward is ongoing. The Medical School has previously communicated that grant money and other investors would be returned to stakeholders where projects could not be completed, and it is assumed that if Williams’ department or team was disinvested from then the grant would have to be refunded. Heart Disease is the biggest killer in Wales, and a leading cause of death in the United Kingdom. A report commissioned by the Welsh Assembly noted that the death rate of Coronary Heart Disease in Wales “is greater than in the majority of countries in Western Europe”.
It is feared that Cardiff University will be neglecting its mission to undertake research for the public good by disinvesting in Cardiology research, particularly when the research interests of charities such as the British Heart Foundation are at stake. A Cardiff University spokesperson would not comment on the future of IMEM or Alan Williams’ group. The spokesperson said: “It would be inappropriate to comment on any funding application or an individual’s circumstances whilst the Medic Forward consultation process remains on-going. “ “Until the consultation with staff, stakeholders, the wider University, the Trade Unions and the individuals themselves is completed we would advise anyone who wishes to raise
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