NIMR move rumbles on

As the United Kingdom's Medical Research Council (MRC) considers the findings of a task force set up to investigate the future of the National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR), currently based in Mill Hill, north London, senior NIMR scientists are furious that the MRC appears to have ruled out developing the existing Mill Hill site as an option.They claim the MRC threw out the idea even though most task force members thought it should be included as one of the recommendations to council. "It is now apparent that the option of the Mill Hill site was not formally considered at the final task force meeting, even though a majority of those members present understood that it would be included in the recommendations," reads a message on the NIMR Web site from the NIMR Heads of Divisions Committee. "We are frankly appalled by the mismanagement that, after all this time and effort, led to the failure of the task force to consider properly the Mill Hill site option," the message continues.The statement also claims that MRC chief executive Colin Blakemore "persuaded the task force to arrive at an interpretation, by a majority of just one," in which Mill Hill was not an option.Blakemore was unavailable for comment, but a spokeswoman for the MRC said the option of staying at Mill Hill had been discussed fully. But she added: "It's clear that the way forward is to look to the future with Kings College" or University College London (UCL), the two sites under consideration.This is the latest twist in a row that began last year when the MRC announced it was considering the future of the NIMR as part of its long-term strategy. The institute, set up in 1913, was behind some of the major achievements in 20th century science, including the discovery of the influenza virus, the development of liquid gas chromatography, and the discovery of the Y chromosome.But the MRC said it was not convinced about the financial benefits of keeping the institute, which has an annual budget of £27 million (USD $49.3 million) and employs more than 700 staff, at its current size on its existing site. An initial plan to shut down the Mill Hill building and relocate the NIMR 50 miles away in Cambridge caused uproar. In April 2003, all 18 division heads at the institute walked out of a meeting with MRC chiefs when they failed to get assurances that the Cambridge plans were not set in stone.Instead, an alternative plan was put forward by the task force last month, in which the NIMR would move a distance of about 10 miles into central London and pair up with either Kings College or UCL to focus on what the MRC described as "more patient-based research."The task force said it believed teaming up with one of the leading London institutions would boost access to other biologists, physical scientists, engineers, and mathematicians. But it stressed such a move could only happen if the benefits were greater than staying at Mill Hill.At a meeting at the end of July, the MRC studied the task force's report and made it clear that remaining at Mill Hill was not one of the options. It said it would make final decisions on the way forward for the NIMR at its next meeting on October 13.But NIMR scientists said the plans will not meet the criteria of improved facilities, more room for development, and better science. "The current proposals are unlikely to satisfy these requirements," they wrote. "They threaten the independent functioning of the institute that is crucially important for its management, scientific success, and national role."A senior source within the NIMR, who did not wish to be identified, told The Scientist: "We hope this not a fait accompli and that we will at some time be supplied with a reason as to why Mill Hill is not being considered as an option. If we were given that reason, we might then be able to say we've had a reasonable discussion and that's the end of it." Other division heads refused comment or were unavailable.

NIMR move rumbles on

Senior scientists remain bitterly opposed to parts of MRC plan

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