Nanotech centres 'unlikely' to survive cuts warns Science Minister

Willetts told the Science and Technology Committee that there were too many small 'sub-critical' research centres and called for centralisation. He added that it was 'most unlikely' that the nanotech centres would still be open in 18 months. He is currently in negotiations with the Treasury about what will be axed from the science budget in October's spending review. As with other government departments, science is facing cuts of between 25% and 40%. Although Willetts told the committee he was determined to protect blue skies scientific research in the UK, he added that he also wanted to avoid simply drawing up a list of 'sexy sounding' subjects, such as biotech or space, to be protected from cuts, as this had proved to be the wrong approach in the past. Willetts said that there would be a more rigorous analysis of what should be protected. When the final five nanotech centres were opened in 2006, the then science minister Lord Sainsbury said: "The UK has created a world leading network of facilities that will significantly increase industry's ability to exploit nanotechnology."