A study of a no-strings-attached Danish research grant scheme shows that setting researchers free to explore their own ideas provides relief from the rat race and is good for science.

Since March 2020 the European Commission has been making moves to improve Europe’s industrial competitiveness. Experts say things are moving in the right direction, but warn there is not enough money or enough focus on scaling up.

With the research budget already overstretched, any more funding for the Missions cannot be at the expense of other parts of Horizon Europe, critics say

Sudden move could derail collaborations that have taken decades to build, scientists say. International-development researchers in Sweden are in turmoil after the country’s government decided to cut all further public research funding for the field.

The CHIPS and Science Act advances equity by codifying an underserved group, but more must be done to correct the effects of skewed research funding.

Horizon Europe has just entered the third of seven years for which it runs, but Brussels is already eyeing the next seven-year research programme. 

Spain is to trial a new science funding programme, which will provide researchers with stable funding for four years to explore new ideas and build capacity, without being tied to specific projects.

Germany's federal research minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger is calling for sweeping reforms at the Fraunhofer Society, one of Europe's most prestigious applied research organisations, after auditors found "numerous violations" of financial rules, including members of the executive board exceeding spending limits for hotel stays and hiring luxury cars.

Facing a potential re-election battle next year, President Joe Biden laid out broad funding priorities for the US government on 9 March. His proposed budget for 2024 would invest new research funds into a range of programmes designed to achieve goals in scientific innovation, domestic manufacturing and clean energy, among others. 

A network of academics are attempting to use a relatively new type of Horizon Europe funding to create grant calls open to both UK and EU applicants while the UK is not associated to Horizon Europe.

Concerns about systemic racism at academic and research institutions have increased. A study investigates data from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and find evidence for pervasive racial disparities.

Reviewers would no longer score researchers' expertise and institutions during grant evaluations for the US biomedical agency.