Medicine: Research

(asked on 22nd March 2018) - View Source

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2018 to Question 124433, on Medicine: Research, how much money the Government has invested in (a) medical research and development and (b) medical research and development carried out by private companies since 2010.


Answered by
Sam Gyimah Portrait
Sam Gyimah
This question was answered on 5th April 2018

The Government invests money in the Medical Research Council (MRC) and Innovate UK, both of which are non-departmental public bodies. The MRC funds (a) medical research and development, while both MRC and Innovate fund (b) medical research and development carried out by private companies.

(a) MRC funding of medical research and development

The Medical Research Council (MRC) supports research through a range of grants and personal awards to scientists in universities, medical schools and other research institutes and welcomes investigator-initiated research proposals in all areas of research relevant to human health. Awards are made on the basis of the scientific quality of the proposals.

Year

MRC gross expenditure

2010/11

£775.11m

2011/12

£736.82m

2012/13

£769.79m

2013/14

£877.32m

2014/15

£801.38m

2015/16

£927.79m

2016/17

£754.98m

Notes:

(b) MRC and Innovate UK funding for medical research and development carried out by private companies

Innovate UK has funded medical research and development across a number of thematic areas, and funding also comprises a share of the that awarded through its Open Programme and other responsive funding programmes. Innovate UK also indirectly supports investment in medical R&D through the core funding it provides the Cell & Gene Therapy Catapult and the Medicines Discovery Catapult

The MRC provides funding for research and development to private companies on an exceptional basis through the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement & Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) CRACK IT scheme using the Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) process from Innovate UK. The scheme drives the development of better and more predictive tools and technologies for drug and chemical development that will impact positively on the replacement, refinement and reduction of animals in research. The scheme funds universities and SMEs to work together to develop these tools so they are fit for purpose for broad uptake.

Year

MRC expenditure to private companies (spend)

Innovate UK (commitment)

2010/11

£0m

£25.12m

2011/12

£0.02m

£29.43m

2012/13

£0.09m

£80.05m

2013/14

£0.32m

£66.64m

2014/15

£0m

£41.72m

2015/16

£0m

£24.42m

2016/17

£0.59m

£63.20m

Please note that spend and commitment figures are not directly comparable as funding may be committed in one year but spent in another.

In addition the Department of Health and Social Care funds research into all aspects of human health through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) at the level of £1bn per year including on programmes on research which encourage collaboration with industry.

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