QUEEN'S University in Belfast is in financial crisis, its head, Sir Gordon Beveridge, has warned. He insisted yesterday that the British government must face up to its obligations and provide proper funding.
The university's Vice-Chancellor said that while higher education in England and Wales was receiving extra funding of £100 million, finance for research studies at Queen's and the University of Ulster was being cut by £4 million.
The reduction was a "disastrous blow". When taken with the additional £6 million which the £4 million would generate in outside research earnings from private industry, this represented a loss of £10 million. "This savage reduction in research funding represents 16 per cent of the Northern Ireland higher education research budget," he said.
Sir Gordon said research was vital in attracting high-technology industry to Northern Ireland and warned of the serious employment implications of cutting research.
