Statement by the Finnish Union of University Professors to the Education and Culture Committee on amendments to the Act on the Research Council of Finland (Academy of Finland)

The freedom of research guaranteed by the Constitution must not be curtailed. The direction of science must be realised primarily through criticism by the scientific community itself. According to the Union, the wording of the Government’s proposal on the Research Council of Finland has failed in terms of safety, and it should be changed.

The current Act on the Research Council of Finland should be supplemented with a mention that the Research Council may not carry out its duties in a manner that would be in conflict with the safety of research as defined in the recommendation adopted by the Council of the European Union.

The draft Government proposal suggests that Academy Professors and Academy Research Fellows would no longer be mentioned in the Act on the Research Council of Finland (formerly Academy of Finland). The Finnish Union of University Professors points out that the Academy Professor position funded by the Research Council of Finland has increased in importance with the introduction of tenure track systems. The Union emphasises that funding instruments concerning Academy Professors and Academy Research Fellows must continue to be secured at the level of legislation.