A number of newspaper have reported that scientists at Manchester University working on graphene are boycotting its top research facility because “a company linked to China has been given access to confidential information”.

The scientists are said to be concerned that the National Graphene Institute (NGI), opened by the Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne last year, does not have safeguards to protect their research.

According to a report in the The Sunday Times, the scientists are refusing to work at the £61 million institute. It was established to find ways of exploiting the super-strong material, and fears have been raised following a deal struck between the university management and a Manchester-based company that is controlled by a Taiwanese businessman. Scientists are concerned that it could result in the unfair use of intellectual information, but the company denies this.

One senior academic said the arrangement with the firm had caused the university’s graphene research to descend into “complete anarchy”, saying: “The NGI is a national facility, and why should we use it for a company that is not even an English-owned company?

How much intellectual property is staying in England and how much is going to Taiwan?” The issue highlights worries that the UK has been slow to develop the technology, with almost 50% of graphene-related patents filed in China and just 1% in the UK.

When he opened the facility in October, Mr Osborne was shown a new graphene light bulb by Sir Konstantin Novoselov, one of two Russian scientists who discovered the substance at Manchester University in 2004. Weeks later, the university announced commercial production of the product. However, The Sunday Times said that only 3% of the shares in the spin-off company are owned by the university.