Govt to review supercomputer budget freeze / Kan backpedals after scientists protest move

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Deputy Prime Minister Naoto Kan on Sunday said he would review the recommendation made by the Government Revitalization Unit to effectively freeze the budget for a next-generation supercomputer project.

Kan's remarks on television followed harsh criticism of the unit's decision by scientists and other experts. The unit came to its decision to slash funding for the project during its ongoing screening of fiscal 2010 budget requests for government-led projects in which it is aiming to identify wasteful spending.

The government is now expected to start negotiations toward securing the necessary budget of about 26.8 billion yen for the supercomputer project in the initial budget request for fiscal 2010, to ensure the project does not stagnate or come to a halt.

"[The unit's task of] identifying wasteful projects is not about making policy decisions. Of course, [the decisions] will be reviewed." Kan, who also is state minister for science and technology, said on an NHK TV program.

"The prime minister and I are both members of the unit's headquarters team. In the end, we politicians will make the decision," he added, suggesting they also would review the unit's budget-cutting recommendations for other science and technology projects. The unit is chaired by Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama.

Yukio Edano of the Democratic Party of Japan, who chairs the unit's budgetary request screening sessions, explained on a TV Asahi program Sunday why the unit had decided on an effective freeze of the supercomputer project budget.

"If [the Education, Science and Technology Ministry] provided a proper explanation [of what the supercomputer could achieve] we wouldn't have reached such a conclusion," said Edano, formerly the DPJ's Policy Research Committee chairman.

"But if there are convincing explanations, I wouldn't mind at all [if the budget for the project] is restored," Edano said.

On Nov. 13, the unit said the budget allocated to the supercomputer development project, which is conducted primarily by Riken in conjunction with other organizations, should be cut almost to the point of freezing the project, because "[the project's] effect is hard for taxpayers to see."

The decision invited criticism and calls for a review of the decision from scientists, including members of the government's Council for Science and Technology Policy.

"Demanding short-term, cost-benefit outcomes doesn't sit well with science and technology, which should be assisted with long-term goals in mind," a council member said. His call was followed by similar pleas for a review by observers and scientists.

(Nov. 23, 2009)

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