Kit Yates, professor of mathematical biology and public engagement1,
Martin McKee, professor of European public health2,
Marleen Bekker, associate professor of health policy and politics3,
Scott Greer, professor of health management and policy, global public health and political science
Science is under siege. Political forces are undermining expertise, dismantling research institutions, and replacing evidence based policymaking with ideology. This is a global crisis. The covid-19 pandemic underscored the importance of scientific independence. While vaccines, diagnostics, and therapeutics saved many lives, governments that ignored expert advice and downplayed the threat allowed lives to be lost. Sometimes, it became a political battleground as public health experts were vilified and disinformation flourished, with deadly consequences.1
In the US, history is currently being rewritten. Life-saving vaccines are falsely being portrayed as harmful, and researchers are being demonised. Scientific institutions are in disarray, with frozen research grants, staff dismissals, and defunded public health agencies.2 Disinformation is rampant, damaging domestic research and international collaborations. The erosion of scientific credibility threatens global health.
This assault on science is also evident in Europe.3 Climate science, vaccine policies, and social research are under attack as populist politicians seek to control narratives rather than confront inconvenient truths. Their strategy is clear. Delegitimise expertise, suppress evidence, and replace objective reality with ideological fictions. The loss of public trust in science threatens everyone.
The scientific community cannot remain passive. European nations, having previously faced such threats from Nazi Germany4 and the Soviet Union,5 have a responsibility to resist and reaffirm their commitment to evidence based policymaking. Today’s choices will determine whether Europe retains its leadership in science or succumbs to political interference.
To safeguard scientific integrity, European countries must prepare for the worst, protecting scientific institutions and researchers from ideologically driven harm. While nothing can fully shield against those who ignore laws and tear up contracts, certain measures can help. Legal safeguards of independence, decentralised structures, and secure, long term research funding from diverse sources are crucial. Scientific advisors should be embedded in both executive and legislative policymaking structures. Institutions must support researchers facing political intimidation, ensuring that speaking out does not jeopardise careers. Independent research councils, freedom-of-information laws, and institutional firewalls against political interference must be fortified.
With the US retreating from its historical leadership in global science and public health, Europe has an opportunity and a responsibility to fill the void. This requires investing in research at a scale that attracts displaced scientists, strengthening international collaborations, and positioning itself as the global standard bearer for scientific integrity. Policies encouraging scientific mobility are also vital, ensuring researchers can work across borders without bureaucratic barriers, allowing knowledge to flow freely in an age of growing nationalism.
One of the most effective tools against the erosion of scientific credibility is public engagement. Scientists must move beyond their laboratories and into the public sphere, communicating their research in accessible terms and countering disinformation directly.6 The scientific community can no longer assume that facts speak for themselves. In a media landscape where misinformation spreads rapidly, it must communicate the importance of science to the public.
Scientific institutions and professional societies also have a role. They should advocate for researchers, particularly those courageously “standing up for science.”7 Academic freedom must be defended, and governments attempting to suppress inconvenient truths must be challenged.8 Public trust in science is not self-sustaining.9 It must be actively cultivated.
Defending science requires action. Governments must enact legal protections for research institutions, universities must provide safe havens for threatened scientists, and the scientific community must reclaim its role as a trusted source of knowledge and policy guidance.
Another critical battleground is the role of social media in spreading misinformation.10 Digital platforms amplify conspiracy theories, undermining decades of scientific progress. The European Union, though not the UK, has taken a lead in holding global technology companies accountable.11 Governments must collaborate to make it harder for falsehoods to spread unchallenged. Scientists should be trained and empowered to engage in digital spaces, countering myths with accessible, evidence based content. Science literacy programmes in schools, accessible science communication, and community based engagement initiatives are essential to building resilience against disinformation.
The warning signs from the US are clear. The dismissal of expertise, defunding of critical research, and spread of conspiracy theories signal a dangerous trajectory. The erosion of trust in science undermines not only research, but also the policies that protect public health, the environment, and human rights.
European nations must recognise that the erosion of scientific integrity anywhere threatens evidence based governance everywhere. By proactively protecting research institutions, engaging the public, and fostering international collaboration, Europe can ensure that science remains a foundation for progress rather than a casualty of political expediency.
The stakes could not be higher. Science is not just about discovery; it is the foundation of informed decision making, technological advancement, and better health. If political forces succeed in dismantling it, the cost will be measured in deaths, despair, and the unravelling of democratic institutions. Now is the time to stand up for science before it is too late. The future of our people and planet depends on our willingness to fight for it.
Footnotes
Competing interests: KY is a member of Independent SAGE. MMK is a special adviser to the Executive Council of the European Public Health Association, a member of the US National Academy of Medicine and a member of Independent SAGE. MB is EUPHA’s policy pillar and member of the European Public health Conference Board. SG none declared.
Acknowledgments: This Opinion is based on a webinar organised by the European Public Health Association in support of the American scientific community. It featured experts in public health, political science, and mathematical biology, each bringing unique insights into the crisis facing scientific integrity. Scott Greer outlined how the US government’s attacks on science are part of a broader transnational conflict, with repercussions far beyond American borders. Kit Yates emphasised the need for international solidarity, urging European institutions to support US researchers facing suppression while also reinforcing their own defences against rising populism. Martin McKee placed the current crisis in historical context, drawing parallels to past authoritarian attacks on science and calling for a robust, coordinated response from European governments and scientific institutions.
Provenance and peer review: not commissioned, not externally peer reviewed.