Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to increase the levels of private research and development investment in Northern Ireland.

We are committed to building on record public investment in research and development to increase private investment across the country, including in Northern Ireland. For example, since we published the Innovation Strategy, Innovate UK has introduced an online Innovation Hub and expanded its EDGE support scheme to help innovative businesses across the UK grow.

Northern Ireland received £47.5 million UKRI funding in 2020-21. We also support the Digital Catapult in Belfast to help innovative businesses grow, and Knowledge Transfer Partnerships funded by Innovate UK and Invest NI are helping local universities and businesses to upskill and enhance their investment potential.