HL Deb 01 December 1987 vol 490 cc927-8

2.46 p.m.

Lord Rodney

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper.

The Question was as follows:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what they are doing to encourage closer collaboration between industry and higher education institutes in the field of applied research.

Lord Beaverbrook

My Lords, government policies are creating a business climate that encourages and rewards enterprise. We are stimulating increased collaborative research between industry and higher education institutes. Through collaborative programmes such as Alvey, JOERS and LINK the Government are encouraging closer ties between the academic community and industry so as to optimise the commercial exploitation of the UK science base.

Lord Rodney

My Lords, I wish to thank my noble friend for that reply. Does he agree that although Her Majesty's Government have made many such schemes available industry is not availing itself sufficiently of those opportunities?

Lord Beaverbrook

My Lords, the Government have created conditions in which enterprise can flourish. We are looking to industry itself to increase its R&D effort. The Government are considering what more could be done to encourage industrial R&D, particularly in the context of our response to the House of Lords Select Committee report on civil research development. But that report rightly recognised that the main responsibility for spending more on R&D rests with industry itself.

Lord Kilmarnock

My Lords, is it not the case that it is the universities themselves which have made the first response to the ACARD Report, Improving Research Links Between Higher Education and Industry, by setting up the BEST programme; that is, British Expertise in Science and Technology? Are the Government not prepared to commend the universities for that initiative?

Lord Beaverbrook

Yes, my Lords, of course I commend the universities for that initiative, but I should say that the Government are committing considerable sums of money and resources to this matter. Up to 31st March 1987, £160 million has been spent by the Government on specific programmes and a further £130 million has already been committed. That does not include the recently launched LINK programme, which envisages public sector expenditure at approximately £200 million over the next five years.

Lord Cledwyn of Penrhos

My Lords, will the noble Lord say how much of the money which he has just mentioned goes to the universities? Is it not the case that over the past five years the universities have suffered a great deal at the hands of this Government by way of the reduction of the money available to them? Has not that affected the amount of research which universities are able to undertake? Will not the noble Lord look at this again and speak to his noble friend with a view to stimulating the universities to do more research, which will be of practical assistance to industry?

Lord Beaverbrook

My Lords, of course I shall bring the remarks of the Leader of the Opposition to the attention of my noble friend the Secretary of State. The sums of money that I have mentioned are aimed at stimulating applied collaborative research.