The main problem in the submitted underestimates is the obligations entered into mainly by the technological faculties for research projects, which cannot be covered by direct funding. In their report, the executive board writes that it is willing to compensate these obligations until the end of 2008 from the general reserves, but wants structurally balanced long-term budgets. Both the deans and the scientific directors will have to indicate which research areas or chairs will be reduced. That must be done before January 1, 2006. Based on that, the deans will draft reorganization plans that result in a balanced budget for the financial year 2008. The total, maximal compensation offered by the executive board is six million euros: 0.3 million for ET, EEMCS 2.1 and S&T 3.6. That is significantly less than the total research obligations, which are estimated to be 17 million euros. The pain is in the difference. All in all, it means a major reduction of the number of research areas. However, the deans and institute directors were promised that the cuts in the research organization would not create irreparable damage.
According to the report, the executive board has ordered faculties and services to cut 2.1 million euros, based on the initial evaluation of the claims of the management units. Five million euros were reserved in the financial year 2006 for a reorganization provision at Engineering Technology.
To complete the story: starting with the budget for 2008, 5 million euros will be cut from the non-primary process (according to the report: central services, ICT services, catering, education efficiency, yield improvement and campus services). `These will be realistic cutbacks, that explicitly affect facility management,' as agreed to by the UT management team. For that reason, the executive board plans to cut 15 million on the execution of the real estate plans, which boils down to a reduction of the annual housing exploitation costs by about 1.2 million. Finally, the board plans to determine exactly what the authority of the deans and the scientific directors are, considering the current tensions between these positions. That should put an end to the squabbling about the so-called toppling of UT research.
The University Council has received the draft budget and policy plans to advise on it.
Trans. Jeroen Latour
