Part III: Antarctica and Academe - Scott Polar Research Institute

Chapter 9
After the war, BAS expansion: 1983-87
A
fter the Falklands War the Government announced an increase in the BAS
budget of £5 million, earmarked for an expanded programme of research, and
including provision for improved logistics agreed with NERC. Although I,
with the help of my staff and John Heap at the Foreign Office drew up the proposals
in the programme, against some opposition, it was known as "the Bondi
Programme"! Bondi was succeeded by Hugh Fish and he prompted by John Bowman
did his best to frustrate my efforts. Research Council politics caused us great
difficulties and the last four years of my Directorship were spent fighting to keep the
money without which we would have been on a declining budget in real terms and
unable to carry out the expanded programme.
The financial rules were changed, the goal posts moved, so that it was clear that
far from an increased overall budget, we would be on a declining budget in real
terms and unable to carry out the expanded programme. This was because it was
claimed that the baseline budget (then about £7 million annually) was not "ringfenced".
Up till then extra capital needs - e.g., for building UK laboratories and
offices, rebuilding a base, replacing a ship or aircraft - had always been provided
outside the baseline budget, by NERC making a special case for extra funds, the
"PESC round". Now I was told that we would have to make provision for such needs
from within the overall budget. It was clear to me that NERC saw the extra funds as
being there to help them with their overall financial problems - robbing Peter to pay
Paul.
It soon became clear that BAS would not be able to implement the new
programme agreed at Cabinet level, unless these NERC decisions, changing the
ground rules, could be reversed. Over several years I failed to persuade Fish and
230