Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal steps he is taking to encourage investment in innovative UK science and technology projects.

As my Rt Honerable Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced at Autumn Statement, the government is significantly increasing investment in R&D, rising to an extra £2 billion a year by 2020-21; the largest increase in any parliament since at least 1979.

This includes an Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, which will support collaborations between businesses and the UK’s world-leading science base.

This will ensure the UK remains an attractive place for businesses to invest in innovative research, and that the next generation of discoveries are made, developed and produced in Britain.