paris

Claude Allègre, the French minister for national education, research and technology, has told research agencies to come up with proposals within a month for increasing the independence of young researchers. He argues that the current system, under which funds are distributed to laboratories rather than individual teams, favours established researchers.

Allègre announced his plans last week after the cabinet had approved a package of measures to support young scientists. The government has created more than 6, 000 new research posts this year, and intends to establish rolling five-year plans to manage recruitment and rejuvenate the research population. The average age of researchers is 47½ — ten years more than in the United Kingdom, for example.

Allègre argues that young scientists must be given greater responsibility. A recent survey by the French embassy in Washington, says a major reason that French postdoctoral scientists stay in the United States, rather than returning home, is the greater autonomy they enjoy there.

Allègre also announced plans to let young physicians work in clinical research within research agencies without first having to do a PhD as they have to now. To increase mobility among young scientists, the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique and other research agencies would create new posts to take in university researchers.

The government will this year support the creation of posts for 650 engineers and 350 scientists within small and medium-sized companies, he said, and make agreements with more than 100 companies for industrial placements for researchers during PhDs. He promised that a bill to lift the obstacles preventing publicly funded researchers from having commercial ties (see above) would also contain provisions geared to helping young scientists to create their own companies.