Brexit taskforce finds fear for cross-border research in Ireland

A survey of Irish researcher’s opinions on Brexit shows wide fear for its effects in Northern Ireland, with respondents on both sides of the border concerned about the fallout.

The Royal Irish Academy has established a Brexit taskforce, which in May carried out a survey of 390 researchers to gather their views on the potential Brexit impacts and opportunities.

When asked how Brexit would impact higher education, 59 per cent of respondents said they expect a negative impact in the Republic of Ireland compared with 75 per cent in Northern Ireland.

Respondents said it was vital for the right to travel north and south in Ireland to be retained post-Brexit. While politicians and diplomats in Dublin, London and Brussels insist there will be no return to border controls after Brexit, a completely seamless border seems unlikely. The EU and non-EU member Switzerland have border and customs control posts, as do Sweden and Norway.

Despite big concerns over travel rights, researchers could foresee some Brexit opportunities for the Republic, such as the potential to attract international students and academics into Ireland who might otherwise have gone to the UK.

Respondents also observed that Ireland should be favourably positioned to win additional funding via the EU’s Marie Curie Sklodowska actions and Erasmus+ programmes, if the UK drops out of these schemes post-2019.

In the meantime, Irish researchers feel they will have to brush up on foreign languages after their English-speaking neighbour departs.

“They expressed concerns that the current level of foreign language skills among academic staff would be insufficient to support Ireland’s ambitions to deepen its international collaborations with EU member states,” the report says.

Northern Irish respondents overwhelmingly stated that they could see no benefits or opportunities to Brexit.