Xref: utzoo sci.space:5282 sci.space.shuttle:677
Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!mcvax!ukc!its63b!bob
From: bob@its63b.ed.ac.uk (ERCF08 Bob Gray)
Newsgroups: sci.space,sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Re: space news from March 28 AW&ST
Message-ID: <1175@its63b.ed.ac.uk>
Date: 19 Apr 88 15:44:52 GMT
References: <1988Apr17.235244.214@utzoo.uucp>
Reply-To: bob@its63b.ed.ac.uk (ERCF08 Bob Gray)
Organization: I.T. School, Univ. of Edinburgh, U.K.
Lines: 32

In article <1988Apr17.235244.214@utzoo.uucp> henry@utzoo.uucp (Henry Spencer) writes:
>ESA and NASA come to tentative agreement on space-station participation!
>ESA also decides to give Britain a chance to change its mind about its
>recent refusal to get involved.

It's funny you should say that.

In an unexpected announcement yesterday, Monday 18th April,
The British Government changed it's previous position on
the funding of space science, and is now to provide
250 million pounds to ESA over the next 10 years to take a
5.5% share in the Columbus project.

This change in policy seems to have happened after a
House of Lords comittee report last month was highly
critical of Government space funding.

The Government minister who made the announcement, and who
earlier criticised ESA for being a "hugely expensive club"
and "Over-ambitious", now says that sufficient changes have
been made to make British participatrion worthwhile.

British Aerospace is expected to be the main contractor for
an Earth observation platform. Other British companies are
expected to provide operation control facilities and data
processing.

Also yesterday, the appointment of the new Director-General
of the UK's National Space Centre was announced. He is
Mr Arthur Prior, 49, a Department of Industry regional
officer in Birmingham for the past three years.
	Bob.