Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to encourage research and clinical trials in non-covid related research.

The Government funds research and clinical trials through UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), and we have put a large focus on research into COVID-19 to tackle the immediate crisis.

The NIHR baseline budget for 2020/21 is set at £1,090 million excluding Official Development Assistance funding. In addition, there will be a number of in-year budget adjustments/transfers and funding contributions from the Devolved Administrations and other funders that have yet to be finalised but will at current estimates exceed £50 million. NIHR expects to spend its budget in full and a significant proportion of this spend will be on funding or supporting clinical trials funded by other research funders

However, the Government’s long-term objectives for R&D are clear: to invest in the science and research that will deliver economic growth and societal benefits across the UK for decades to come, and to build the foundations for the new industries of tomorrow.