§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Social Services of the money allocated for research by his Department, what proportion and how much was spent on deafness problems in the last year for which figures are available; how much was spent on (a) sensory and (b) sight; and if he will list the research projects concerned with deafness supported by his Department.
§ Mr. NewtonIn the financial year 1983–84, the latest for which exact expenditure figures are available, the total DHSS research Vote was £19,361,000. Of this, some £64,000, or 0.33 per cent. was spent on research directly related to deafness.
The term "sensory problems" in the question is taken to mean simultaneous impairment of both sight and hearing; £11,600 was spent on research relevant to this problem. In addition, £109,100 was spent on research relevant to sight impairment.
Following are the projects supported by the Department in 1983–84 and still current.
Research Projects on Deafness supported by DHSS in 1983–84 and still current
The following current project is concerned with hearing impairment in children, but as it is also concerned with other types of physical disablement, it is not included in the financial total given in the accompanying reply. DHSS support for the project totalled £70,200 In 1983–84: "Child Health Education Study". Professor N. R. Butler, Bristol University.
- "Development of techniques for the fitting and for the assessment of benefits resulting from the issue of higher-power hearing aids to persons with severe hearing loss". C. G. Rice, Southampton University.
- "Effects of visual, auditory and tactile cues on lip-reading performance in deaf adults". Dr. G. Fenn, School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge University.
- "Evaluation Trials on a Neonatal Auditory Response Cradle" Mr. J. Bennett, Brunel University.