We're all dooooomed........
Well, the news of the potential loss of funding for MERLIN - and the resulting implications for the future of the Observatory - has been picked up by the press (Guardian article from Tuesday). Today there was a large article in the printed Times, quickly followed by stories in the online versions of the Guardian, Daily Mail, BBC News, Manchester Evening News and the Register, amongst others. Prof Simon Garrington, director of MERLIN, has issued a formal response to the STFCs document which was released on Monday, ranking the project as low priority.
Statements from the government and STFC state that no funding decisions have been taken so far. The document released on Monday was the result of the programmatic review and does not represent actual decisions. The consultation period continues until March 21st, after which small panels will be set up to review each area of the programme before actual funding decisions are taken. The trouble is, those decisions will have to be made quickly before the start of the new spending period.
Watch this space.
Comments: