Womp Womp: UK Now At Risk Of Losing Expanded Weather Research Center, 250 Jobs Because Of Brexit

[hatrack]

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The UK is at risk of losing the contract for the expansion of a flagship European weather research centre based in Reading because of Brexit. The European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) has been based in Berkshire for the last 45 years but its future EU-funded activities are now the subject of an international battle.

At stake is a planned new facility with up to 250 jobs, and nine countries – including France, Germany, Spain, Ireland and Italy – are vying for the business. “As a consequence of Brexit, a competition to relocate all ECMWF EU-funded activities from Reading in the UK to an EU member state is taking place during 2020,” an official briefing note from one member state said.

ECMWF, which is also a key body for climate-change research, is backed by 34 countries, 22 of them EU member states. In addition to weather forecasting, it operates a number of EU-funded programmes, including two services from the EU’s Copernicus satellite Earth-observation programme, monitoring the atmosphere and the climate crisis.

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The battle for the Brexit spoils has echoes of the post-referendum contests over the future of the European Medicines Agency, which moved from Canary Wharf in London along with 900 jobs, and the European Banking Authority, which has moved to Paris because of Brexit.While the UK is keen to see the new facility, which will house up to 250 staff, established alongside the HQ in Berkshire, it is not clear if it will be eligible to bid.

One source thought this could depend on whether the UK seals a deal to continue involvement in key EU environment and climate research programmes such as Copernicus after Brexit. The deadline for submissions for the weather centre contract is 1 October, by which time trade talks are not expected to be completed.

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https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/sep/26/uk-risks-losing-contract-for-new-climate-weather-research-centre-due-to-brexit-ecmwf-reading

[Mickju]

1. Being right wing wackos has consequences.