§ Dr. GibsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what role the Minister of Science will play in the new structures within her Department; [18278]
(2) what plans she has to reconstruct the Office of Science and Technology, and if she will make a statement; [18275]
(3) what role a Director General of Science, Technology and Innovation will play in directing blue skies research; and if she will make a statement; [18277]
(4) what plans she has for the role of the Director General Research Councils. [18276]
§ Ms HewittThe responsibilities of the Office of Science and Technology (OST), which are cross-Government, will remain largely unchanged. The new Director General of Science, Technology and Innovation in the DTI will work closely with the Director General of Research Councils and with the Government's Chief Scientific Adviser and Head of the OST to integrate the Department's policy-making on science, technology and innovation with its productivity agenda.
One of the new Director General of Science Technology and Innovation's key objectives will be to maximise the Government's significant investment in science by providing a stronger focus on technology transfer within my Department. He or she will be recruited from outside the Department and will work with the Minister for Science and Innovation in carrying out their functions.