Oral Answers to Questions

Wendy Morton Excerpts

Tuesday 12th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[The Minister for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation (Joseph Johnson)]

UK participation in Horizon 2020 has held up remarkably well since June 2016. We remain one of the strongest performers across the EU system. As the hon. Lady will have seen, last Friday’s joint report between the Commission and the UK Government painted a very positive outlook for our continued participation in this valuable programme.

[Wendy Morton (Aldridge-Brownhills) (Con)]

T2. Given the importance of the automotive industry to the UK, and particularly to the west midlands, does the Secretary of State agree that it is essential to invest in test environments for self-driving cars to ensure that the UK can compete with other countries that want to become the world’s test bed for new vehicle technologies?

[Greg Clark]

I agree with my hon. Friend. That is one reason why we have established a series of test beds between London and the west midlands, including the motorsport cluster. They are already attracting huge interest from around the world, reinforcing our reputation in the field.