Campaign group suggests ‘quick wins’ to begin levelling the playing field. Even with the government’s attempts to increase the representation of women, ethnic minorities and people with disabilities in science and mathematics, progress in the United Kingdom has remained too slow, according to a report published today by a UK non-profit organization. “Looking back over […]
policy
Quebec doctors aim to fill marijuana knowledge gaps
Doctors in Quebec who prescribe medical marijuana will automatically take part in a province-wide research project to assess the risks and benefits of the drug. Health Canada recently shifted responsibility for deciding who should have access to the drug onto the shoulders of individual doctors, raising concerns among physician groups, including the Canadian Medical Association, […]
UK foreign aid turns to research
£375 million from development budget will be redirected to science partnerships with middle-income economies. The United Kingdom has launched a five-year, £375 million (US$630 million) fund to support science and innovation partnerships with researchers in developing countries that will focus on economic development. Read more in Nature.
Be wary of “prescribing” medical marijuana, CMA warns
Canadian physicians should be wary of “prescribing” medical marijuana under new regulations that come into effect on Apr. 1, 2014, says the president of the Canadian Medical Association. “For the CMA, nothing has really changed,” says Dr. Hugo Francescutti. “Our stand has always been that there is insufficient scientific evidence to support the use of marijuana for […]
Storm brewing over WHO sugar proposal
Industry backlash expected over suggested cut in intake. Scientists are gearing up for a battle with the food industry after the World Health Organization (WHO) moved to halve its recommendation on sugar intake. Nutrition researchers fear a backlash similar to that seen in 2003, when the WHO released its current guidelines stating that no more […]
Don’t let my failure put you off, Ignatieff tells academics
Michael Ignatieff’s failed bid for Canada’s highest office must not put off other intellectuals from trying, he tells Research Canada editor Brian Owens. The first thing Michael Ignatieff wants people to know, when discussing his thwarted political career, is that he is not bitter about the way it turned out. “I’m glad I did it, […]
Canadian government accused of destroying environmental archives
Researchers fear that valuable documents will disappear as libraries close and merge. Scientists in Canada are up in arms over the recent closure of more than a dozen federal science libraries run by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) and Environment Canada. The closures were mostly completed by last autumn, but hit the headlines last week […]
New Brunswick drug plan hopes to avoid pitfalls of other provinces
New Brunswick waited a long time for a prescription drug plan but it may now have the best one in Canada, according to Steve Morgan, who studies pharmaceutical policy at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. “New Brunswick learned not to make the mistake of the western provinces, which only cover prescription drugs costs […]
Lakes scientists ‘surplus’ to fisheries ministry requirements
Researchers at the Experimental Lakes Area have received letters from Fisheries and Oceans Canada declaring their positions to be “surplus”, and offering them jobs elsewhere in the ministry, Research Canada has learned. The letters were expected, as the government department has ended funding for the environmental research station and is working to transfer ownership of […]
Does parliament need a science watchdog?
The NDP is making a play for the science vote. At last week’s Canadian Science Policy Conference the party’s science critic, Kennedy Stewart, unveiled the third plank in the opposition’s slowly developing science policy: an independent Parliamentary Science Officer (PSO). Stewart will table his proposal in the house this week as a private member’s bill – it would create […]