US Faces Science Brain Drain After Europe Backs Stem Cell Funding
· Disillusioned researchers could move to UK · Debate divides members but
ends in compromise
The United States is risking a "brain drain", in which its scientists will
flock across the Atlantic, after the EU reached a "historic" deal yesterday
on human embryonic stem cells.

A week after George Bush limited federal funds for the highly sensitive
area, the EU warned Washington that "disillusioned" US scientists will want
to make the most of Europe's more liberal rules.

Lord Sainsbury, Britain's science minister, said: "There are a group of
American scientists who are very disillusioned. In this field we have seen
US scientists coming to the UK. If the US continues to take this very
negative position I think within this field of regenerative medicine we will
see scientists come from America and from other parts of the world, who
would have gone to America, to the UK instead."

His remarks came after EU science ministers agreed to allow part of the
union's expanded £37bn science budget to be spent on research into human
embryonic stem cells. Berlin had attempted to block the funding on the
grounds that it did not want its taxpayers' money to fund sensitive research
which is subject to strict limits in Germany.

At the end of a passionate debate, which pitted liberal and conservative
countries against each other, Germany dropped its objections. Germany backed
down after winning an assurance from the European commission that no EU
money would be spent on the destruction of human embryos - effectively a
stronger statement of the existing position.

Human embryos have to be destroyed to allow the harvesting of embryonic stem
cells. The EU rules mean that this part of the process will have to be
funded from outside the EU budget.

Germany's change allowed Finland, which holds the EU's rotating presidency,
to clinch what it called a "historic" deal. This will mean that individual
member states will continue to have the right to decide whether to spend EU
money on stem cell research in their own countries.

Lord Sainsbury contrasted Europe's pragmatic position with the inflexible
position of Mr Bush who last week vetoed a bill that would have expanded
government funding for stem cell research. "In Europe we are moving forward
on this front whereas America has taken, as far as the federal government is
concerned, a very negative position. That Europe is moving forward is
extremely good."

But deep European divisions were exposed at yesterday's ministerial meeting
in Brussels. Poland, Austria, Malta, Slovakia and Lithuania voted against
stem cell research. They were opposed yesterday by France, Britain, the
Netherlands, Spain and Portugal, showing that the divisions were not simply
between Catholic and non-Catholic countries.

Elisabeth Gehrer, the Austrian science minister, asked: "Do we really want
300-400 fertilised human embryos to be destroyed to create stem cells? This
destruction of human embryos to create stem cell lines is not something we
can support. We do not want community money, which includes Austrian money,
to support this."

In a highly charged intervention, the Portuguese science minister asked his
opponents to think of the consequences of limiting funding. Jose Mariano
Gago said: "I hope that none of the colleagues will ever need treatment
which does not yet exist for dementia and Alzheimer's. These are treatments
which could be made possible by research with stem cells. If you find
yourself in such a position I hope you would be able to say you did not
stand in the way of such research."

François Goulard, the French minister, spoke up in favour of the compromise.
"We must not try to prevent very important research ... Across the world we
are seeing important scientific progress being made and I am a little bit
worried that Europe might lag behind in an area where we absolutely have to
be in the forefront."

Germany was in trouble from the start of the day, when Slovenia changed its
mind and made clear it would support the deal.

By Guardian Unlimited © Copyright Guardian Newspapers 2006
Published: 7/24/2006

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