House of Commons Science and Technology Research Integrity Report
The House of Commons Select Committee Report identified that, although most research-intensive universities were complying with the key recommendations of the 2012 Concordat to Support Research Integrity, around a quarter of universities were not fulfilling the basic requirements for research integrity.
The report identified the following set of recommendations:
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Strengthen the current Concordat so compliance can more easily be assessed
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Increased transparency on research misconduct required
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External members to be included on research misconduct investigation panels for serious cases
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A new committee to be responsible for championing research integrity in the sector to be established by UKRI.
Further recommendations included:
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That there was a need to publish ‘negative’ research findings, particularly in the field of medicine
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That all universities should be encouraged to subscribe to the UK Research Integrity Office (UKRIO)
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Research Integrity should form part of the ‘environment’ judgements for the next Research Excellence Framework
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Clearer requirements on training, contributing to research culture with particular attention to avoid the common misuse of statistics and the training being offered to doctoral students
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Employers, funders and publishers need to legally share information on research misconduct and support employers developing protocols to manage cases across institutional boundaries.