Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what discussions he has had with Scottish universities on support for their commercial spin outs.

Government regularly engages with universities, investors and innovative firms across the UK, including Scotland, on research commercialisation and university spin-outs. Scottish universities make a significant contribution to the UK's spin-out ecosystem and wider innovation economy, producing 12% of UK university spin-outs since 2011, demonstrating the strength of Scotland’s innovation ecosystem.

Government is investing over £1.5 billion through UK Research and Innovation to support spin-outs and research translation. This will build on the implementation of the recommendations of the Independent Review of University Spin-outs, increase in proof-of-concept funding, as well as a new Venture Doctorates programme and Enterprise Fellowships to help commercialise researchers' ideas.