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The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew announced that financial problems would result in them having to implement a programme to make over one hundred people redundant, almost
fifty of which are scientists. This impact, while not entirely due to Government budget reductions, has been exacerbated by how the Government manages the funding of the organisation, something we regard as a recipe for failure. Sudden changes in funding forced a more rapid change in scientific personnel than may otherwise have been necessary causing a public outcry at the risk posed to the Gardens and its world class science functions.
We heard that the management of the Gardens consider the current process provides them with little leeway to deal with unexpected expenses and unable to properly plan for the future. There is an urgent need for the management at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew to be given more freedom in how they manage their budget and an indication of funding over the longer term to enable better planning for future problems.
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew has a similar mix of issues as the Natural History Museum (mixing the management of heritage buildings and being a visitor attraction while delivering world class science) and we recommend that the triennial reviews of these institutions should inform each other to ensure more consistency of treatment and funding from their respective Government sponsors.
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