A proposed change in how research is funded in Canada has researchers there worried that innovative research would wither, reports The Globe and Mail's Anne McIlroy. "The Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the arm's-length federal agency that funds labs at universities across the country, has proposed changes it says are designed to ease the strain on the overburdened peer review system," McIlroy says. "Under the proposed new system, researchers with a solid track record who now have multiple grants could apply for one seven-year grant."
But some researchers who would qualify for this program say they may end up with a lot less money than they currently get, and fear the CIHR is trying to cap funding for individual researchers, and move funds away from basic research, McIlroy adds. CIHR says the proposed streamlined process will help researchers avoid the hassle of multiple grant applications.