From D A REES
Your article on the closure of the Clinical Research Centre (28 April)
is very fair in its report of recent history and the wide range of opinions
relating to recent events. Unfortunately, the title ‘The slimming of clinical
research’ neither reflects the content of the article nor the Medical Research
Council’s plans. The slimming of clinical research is very definitely not
what will result from closure of the CRC. The MRC has already agreed with
the Advisory Board for the Research Council that the resources which are
at present committed to the CRC will be reserved for the new clinical research
initiatives at Hammersmith and a number of other university centres. These
resources will be put to better use by strengthening clinical research through
the university system and in a way which will complement other major MRC
initiatives (for example, in clinical genetics, clinical neuroscience, human
physiology).
We are optimistic that the MRC will receive supplementary funding to
meet a significant part of the capital costs and the one-off constructing
costs associated with these new developments. At the end of the day, while
we may not have won the argument for a major new national centre, we shall
have achieved a major strengthening of clinical research in this country.
D. A. Rees Secretary Medical Research Council London
