Northern rock !!!

Andy, Chesterfield,

To me, this proves that Bin Laden & his ilk, have beaten us completly, to abandon research like this because of the rising cost of "The war on terror" is a tragady of the first order......why are there no lottery funds for this?
Bob Meade

Bob, Thetford,

We're watching this government close down Britain bit by bit. One by one cherished and important facilities and institutions such as Jodrell Bank are being shelved, side lined or simply shut down because the government will not put the right money in the right places. Meanwhile they fund more and more madcap schemes so that Britain can single handedly solve global warming or traffic congestion - due to their lack of investment in road development as it turns out - and endlessly raise more and more taxes which they then squander. If we lose our standing in the world as a power for exploration and development, we will become mere bystanders and worthless and national pride will plunge. Is it any wonder the smart money is leaving for foreign parts. Its time for a change of government!

John, Chichester, UK

...by the way, isn't the £2 million pounds running costs of Jodrell Bank less than the annual costs to rent all the flats and houses that have remained empty and unused for 10 years for the armed services? (Sigh!)

John, Chichester, UK

everything is being run down in tune for 2012,the time of the pole flip,where nothing of this kind will be of any use during or after,why are we in iraq?ask yourself that and research,old storys of annunaki.also ask why most things now are either planned or wscheduled for 2012,this date crops up again and again in all walks of life

peter, luton, england

Before making this decision, i hope all those involved looked themselves in the mirror and asked whether the bilions spent on munitions for the war in Iraq were a better use of our taxes than this pursuit of world leading science. Which has contributed more positively to our standing in the world?

Tim Ewbank, Cambridge, UK

They will just have to re-classify the telescope as DEFENCE, the government will then spend much more money on it, and it will not even matter if it doesn't work. (sarcasm off)
It will be a great shame if they close this magnificent telescope just because of funding. There are millions (if not billions) of pounds wasted every year on crackpot schemes that could be better invested in worthwhile facilities like the Jodrell Bank Telescope. It is part of our heritage and hopefully it will continue to exist, not as a museum piece but as a working science institute.

Mike Adams, Doncaster, UK

I thought we were trying to encourage our youth to pursue a career in the sciences. It seems ludicrous to close Jodrell Bank which is, after all, a really good practical science lesson. I can remember my sons being very interested & motivated by their visit there. Do we have to continue to lose the best of British? Let's hope common sense prevails & that Jodrell Bank is saved.

E. Nichols, Norwich,

These science cuts are an absolute joke.

This government should be ashamed of itself - very ashamed.

Tony Anstis, Hillingdon, UK

It's a great shame to let this great historic radio telescope close especially after what has already been invested in its improvement and the ongoing potential discoveries that it can yet produce. I remember well visiting Jodrell bank as a child and it inspired a life long interest in astronomy. It is still a wonderfall site when ever travelling through Cheshire. It still excites me when I catch site of it. Closing Jedrell Bank is madness and should be seriously reconsidered.

Peter, Nottingham,

Well, I guess when you're paying £1bn a month to EU membership only to have a continual trade deficit with them (the reason we joined them was to trade!), this sort of thing was bound to happen sometime. Some thing's got to give.

Matt, Aberystwyth, GB

Why are people so confused about the downfall of the sciences within our education system? Jodrell Bank is a common visiting ground for many a school trip, loose this and we loose the right to question the UK's commitment to science.

I am completely disgusted by this government and their cost cutting shenanigans, this is just one step too far.

Rob Harwood, Coventry,

surely we should not expect anything less from a "government" who spends billions on stupid schemes and grandiose projects as well as putting us all in hock to northern rock.

Albert Hall, kettering,

The closure of Great Britain continues apace under this Government , despite Ministers and apologists claiming that they are not responsible for decisions 'made locally' or 'within the independent remit.'
The latest disgrace is the threatened closure of Jodrell Bank , one of the great British facilities and icons. Funding from the
The Science and Technology Facilities Council may stop as they see the work as " low priority".
Looking at who the STFC are , they claim to be an independent, non-departmental public body of the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS). Their newspeak needs to be exposed and those responsible for damaging the country brought to account.
Shut the STFC and while you are at it , get rid of those people at NICE.

Peter, Asaph,

These scientists are clearly not particularly clever.

If they uttered the magic words, "but half our staff are from ethnic minorities and we are looking at the stars from a multi-cultural perspective" they'd get all the funding they need, and more, forever.

Mike, Brighton, England

Petition the PM at http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/jodrellfunding/

Andy Haworth, Accrington,

when scores of Labour MP's sign an early day motion congratulating Fidel Castro on his murderous dictatorship
over cuba, yes, I would say this government is treasonous and have allegiances elsewhere.

tally, Durham , England

If this was a matter of allowances for the members of parliament and their associates, this would be sorted before sundown. Anyway, science does not need to be exclusively funded by government. It can also be funded and supported by private means by way of the public, given the will and organisation. The UK public bet £20-billion per annum without any coercion by the government to do so. A major breakthrough in genetic research was made possible by a guy in a broom cupboard.

North Korea and Iran, for example, does not have such a problem when it comes to nuclear research leading to a weapons programme. But that has its consequences for the public. In addition, too much science is simply needless duplication.

Charles Smyth, Belfast, Northern Ireland

You can voice your disgust on the Prime Ministers web page's online petition on http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/RadioAstronomy/

Douglas, Leeds,

This is what labour governments do. Go back over the last 60 years, a gift of Jet engines to Russia in the 40’s, the scraping of the TSR2 in the 60’s after £300,000,000, allowing concord to be scrapped. They have a deep routed loathing of any scientific or businesses success in Britain. In a nutshell they are traitors, and I sometimes wonder, if they are all in the pay of external powers, whose long term aim is to see the demise and death of Britain as a World power.

Bob Dillon, London, London

We are well on the way to becoming a third-level country of we don;t keep up with our technology and science investment.

How can the government not see this???

tony grigg, bristol,

Here is another example of this government's inherent inability to recognize excellence wherever it exists.

It seems as if it has a secret agenda for this country to be dependent on the rest of the world, for pushing forward the boundaries of knowledge.

Saving money in this case, can only be a political ploy.

howard, london,