a day ago
UK taxpayer funds gay porn studies and music therapy for pregnant Africans
The Government has spent nearly £30 million on fringe research projects such as exploring gay porn after the Second World War and recording Syrian harvesting songs.
An investigation by The Telegraph has found evidence that dozens of overseas projects have been given eye-watering funding by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) since 2022, despite having no obvious benefit to British taxpayers.
They include nearly £850,000 for Birmingham City University to look into the circulation of gay male erotica and porn magazines in post-war Europe.
More than £350,000 was also given to the University of Oxford to save the threatened language of Enggano, which is spoken by just 1,500 people on Enggano Island, in Sumatra, Indonesia.
Likewise, £600,000 was awarded to Durham University to help displaced Palestinians from the single Shia village of Qadas in Israel access their archaeology.
A further £784,000 was awarded to the University of Exeter to create a historical account of the development of child soldiering in Africa.
Exeter was also given £307,000 to revitalise the language and culture of people living in the ancestral territories of the K'omox, Pentlatch, and E'iksan in Vancouver Island, Canada, as well as the Maori of New Zealand.
Meanwhile, the University of Warwick received nearly £800,000 to highlight 'invisible women in Italian cinema' and Edinburgh University was awarded £123,000 to record 'harvesting songs of displaced Syrian refugees living in Middle Eastern countries'.
Last December, The Telegraph reported how taxpayers were footing a £6 billion bill for 'nonsense' research projects such as the 'literary decolonisation' of Africa, LGBT rights in China and the marketing of vegan meat products.
Joanna Marchong, investigations campaign manager of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: 'Taxpayers will be livid when they see how ridiculous some of these research projects have become.
'UKRI have a proven track record of wasting taxpayers' cash on research projects that are no more than virtue-signalling nonsense that don't stand to benefit the people paying for them.
'Ministers need to remember why UKRI was created and return to investing in research that will make a difference to hard-working Brits.'
UKRI told The Telegraph that for projects to be funded they must show value for money for British taxpayers as well as have a broader societal benefit.
However, huge sums are being spent funding seemingly niche schemes in overseas communities that can have little advantage for British citizens.
For example, the University of Roehampton and Stellenbosch University in South Africa were awarded £2.8 million to look into how music could support the mental health of expectant mothers in Africa.
On the subject, Stellenbosch said: 'Group music-making has been shown to boost mood and foster social connections. Early research indicates that daily listening to specially composed music during pregnancy reduces anxiety symptoms.'
When The Telegraph asked whether the research would also be used to help British mothers with mental health issues, the project team did not respond.
Likewise, nearly a quarter of a million pounds was given to the University of Manchester to explore housing rights for marginalised citizens of Lagos and São Paulo.
The University of London received £323,000 to create a film-making coalition to help the Mursi agro-pastoralists of the Lower Omo Valley of Ethiopia.
Birmingham University received £313,000 to 'promote reproductive justice' for the Pankararu and Xukuru communities in north-east Brazil.
Similarly, the University of Cambridge was awarded £314,000 for the 'restoration of traditional justice in the Sa'th Tama Kiwe Territory in Caldono, Cauca, Colombia'.
Most of the fringe projects funded were awarded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, part of UKRI although some fell under the National Institute for Health and Care Research.
Roehampton University was also awarded £805,000 to create a performance of the 16th-century play Galatea by John Lyly centred around 'female, trans, queer, disabled and migrants' and deliberately 'featuring almost no adult cisgender men'.
UKRI spends more than £9 billion a year, but in May the body was criticised by the National Audit Office (NAO) for having a lack of coherent direction, any measurable objectives or adequate ministerial oversight.
The NAO also warned that the UKRI could not provide 'a reliable picture of whether, across the organisation, error and fraud are under control'.
A UKRI spokesman said: 'International research collaboration is vital to help us tackle global challenges in a complex and interconnected world, improving security and prosperity in the UK and internationally.
'Several of the projects highlighted were funded through Official Development Assistance, where the main benefit is required to be in the developing country involved.
'Projects are prioritised for funding through independent expert peer review, as set out in the Higher Education and Research Act.
'UKRI supports a diverse portfolio of investments including curiosity-driven research and strategic initiatives, which drives the creation and exploitation of new knowledge, and develops skilled and talented people for a wide range of jobs improving lives and livelihoods across the UK.
'On average, every £1 of public R&D investment generates at least £7 of net benefit to the UK through the development of new and better goods, services and processes.'
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