London universities are likely to lose at least 2,300 academic posts if plans to restructure the National Health Service budget go ahead, it has been claimed.
London Higher, the umbrella organisation for the capital's universities and higher education colleges, believes the axe could fall on junior and senior health-related university posts.
It claims that plans to change the NHS's research and development budget could mean London universities would lose at least 2,4 academic positions, Pounds 313 million in research income and 1,124 non-academic jobs over a decade.
At present, NHS trusts get set amounts from the Department of Health for research and development. The cash available to trusts for R&D depends on quality of work, and London is home to some of the country's leading medical research.
But the DH is discussing whether to make trusts bid against each another at national level for funds. London Higher said that such a system would result in cash being spread more thinly between trusts.
It estimated that London universities stood to lose, at the very least, 20 per cent of government funds for healthcare research. The figure is based on predictions by consultants PricewaterhouseCoopers, who visited deans of London medical schools last year.
Adrian Smith, chair of London Higher and principal of Queen Mary, University of London, said: "This threatens to be a double whammy. The interconnections between universities and the NHS in London are so profound that any change to funding is likely to impact not just on our research potential, but also on frontline service delivery."
Others thought London Higher was worrying unnecessarily. Katie Petty-Saphon of the Council of Heads of Medical Schools said: "We are confident that the quality of work will ensure that London's universities will be able to compete successfully for the new research funding."
Universities UK, which represents university vice-chancellors, said the funding proposals would improve efficiency. A spokesman said the plans would protect NHS expenditure for research and development in the long run.