The UK should establish a one-stop shop for advice on research integrity to rebuild public confidence undermined by a series of scandals, says a government-backed report.
Such a body could offer guidance across scientific disciplines on issues such as poor practice and misconduct, suggests the Research Integrity Futures Working Group. The group, chaired by Janet Finch, the vice-chancellor of Keele University, says “major breaches” of good practise at international level and “periodic concerns” in the UK have undermined public confidence in research.
“Current UK arrangements are sometimes portrayed as less than transparent, with examples of bad practice ‘swept under the carpet’,” warns the group’s newly released report. “And there is limited evidence to contradict that view.”
A lack of data on failures in research integrity is a particular weakness of the United Kingdom. Data from countries such as the United States and Germany suggest the problem might be worse in the United Kingdom, says the report. The report does not single out any specific incidents of misconduct, nor does it cite sources for the suggestion that the United Kingdom might have a larger problem than other nations.
Finch’s group want a new body funded with £400,000 a year from the government. This would have no regulatory function but could offer advice and collect data on integrity issues. It would also build on the work of the current UK Research Integrity Office (UKRIO), which is at present only funded until October this year.
James Parry, the acting head of UKRIO, said in a statement, “We were especially pleased to note that the Group’s report recommends a very similar model of support for research to that which UKRIO currently operates: an independent advisory body offering confidential and expert support to institutions, researchers and the public. The proposed programme of work is also very similar to that undertaken by UKRIO, as is the emphasis on support that is appropriate and proportionate, rather than burdensome and bureaucratic.”