Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of dementia research funding.

Government responsibility for delivering dementia research is shared between the Department of Health and Social Care, with research delivered via the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, with research delivered via UK Research and Innovation.

Government funders are investing in dementia research across all areas, from causes, diagnosis, and prevention, to treatment, care, and support, including for carers. Between the financial years 2019/20 and 2023/24, the Government spent £496.4 million on dementia research.

Whilst no recent assessment has been made of the adequacy of dementia research funding, the NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and care, including dementia. These applications are subject to peer reviews and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality. Welcoming applications on dementia to all NIHR programmes enables maximum flexibility both in terms of the amount of research funding a particular area can be awarded, and the type of research which can be funded.