Top geneticist loses £3.5-million grant in first test of landmark bullying policy

Holly Else:

One of the world’s largest research-funding charities has revoked a £3.5-million (US$4.5-million) grant awarded to a top cancer geneticist, Nazneen Rahman, following allegations that she bullied scientists and other staff members when she worked at the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) in London.

The decision to pull the funding represents the first implementation of a pioneering anti-bullying and anti-harassment policy that the charity — the Wellcome Trust in London — introduced in June. Wellcome says that it learnt in July that Rahman had resigned following an independent investigation into the bullying allegations.

“My team and I will complete our Wellcome-funded research prior to my leaving ICR in October,” Rahman told Nature. “We are working with ICR and Wellcome to ensure science and patients can benefit from our work.”