Back in July it was announced that UNESCO World Heritage site Jodrell Bank would lose its government funding, leading it to potential closure in 2028. Now, Prime Minister Andy Burnham has all but promised this will not happen under his government, preaching security for its future during his first official address to the Commons yesterday (September 1).
In the House of Commons PM Andy Burnham said: “Every one of my generation went on a school trip to Jodrell Bank, and there is no way that we can see its demise, and it won’t happen under my government.
“I know there are changes that have been made in relation to research funding, but Jodrell Bank is a heritage asset for the country, as well as a research asset.
“There must be a way to save Jodrell Bank, and I give a commitment today, at this despatch box, we will find it.”
In 2019 Jodrell Bank was recognised as a site of Outstanding Universal Value and inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site list. It has housed the largest steerable telescope in the world, the Lovell Telescope, for over 70 years and the proposed cut was described by Manchester’s Professor Brian Cox as “hasty and ill-considered”.
Jodrell Bank was established in 1945 after scientist Bernard Lovell chose a remote field in Cheshire to test whether radar could be used to study cosmic rays. Since then, the telescope has monitored the Apollo 11 moon landing and received the first lunar surface photos from the Soviet Luna 9 probe.
The government agency which provides £2.8m to help fund Jodrell Bank Observatory, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), announced this money would be withdrawn at the end of next tax year. Jodrell Bank Observatory is owned and managed by the University of Manchester and is still a world-leading science research institute, with scientists working at the cutting edge of modern astrophysics.
More than 150 public figures have signed a letter calling for the government to reverse its decision and “find funding immediately to save Jodrell Bank”. Names include Tim Peake, Sir Brian May, Johnny Marr, Jarvis Cocker, New Order, Elbow, Doves and Dara Ó Briain.
