§ Lord Eltonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of King's Heath on 16 October (WA 75–76), what are the criteria by which they allocate funds for research into multiple sclerosis, Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy and AIDS respectively. [HL32]
30WA
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathGovernment support for research into Multiple Sclerosis, Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy (TSEs) and AIDS is provided through a number of government departments and research councils.
When assessing individual proposals in any scientific area, the same fundamental criteria are used:
- scientific quality of the proposals;
- significance and importance of the research topics;
- proposals' contribution to the scientific strategy and priorities of the research council and the government department considering the proposals;
- value-for-money.
Over the past few years the Government have put in place special funding initiatives in the areas of both AIDS and TSEs to expand the United Kingdom research base in order to address urgent new health problems. The funding data provided in my previous reply of 16 October (WA 75–76) reflect this.
A similar approach has not been taken with Multiple Sclerosis but, nevertheless, the scope for increasing the MRC's support in the field has been evaluated by the MRC Neurosciences and Mental Health Board and at a recent workshop, and is now being considered.