§ Mr. Formanasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will set out in tabular form public expenditure in support of civil science via (a) the University Grants Committee and (b) the research councils in each year from 1970 to the latest available date; and if he will express these figures as a proportion of total public spending on higher education in each case.
§ Mr. WaldenPublic expenditure in support of civil science via the University Grants Committee cannot be
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Expenditure in support of civil science 1. 2. 3. 4. Financial year R and D expenditure from universities' general income £ million cash1 1 as percentage of total public expenditure on higher education2 Public expenditure on the Research Councils £ million cash 3 as percentage of total public expenditure on higher education 1970–71 — — 108.5 — 1971–72 — — 126.8 — 1972–73 — — 139.4 — 1973–74 — — 139.9 — 1974–75 — — 157.2 18.1 1975–76 — — 191.4 16.2 1976–77 — — 227.4 14.5 1977–78 261.7 15.8 246.9 14.9 1978–79 298.4 16.1 281.1 15.2 1979–80 359.3 16.3 324.5 14.7 1980–81 441.3 16.2 389.7 14.3 1981–82 484.0 16.4 447.8 15.2 1982–83 535.0 16.7 477.8 14.9 1983–84 551.0 16.4 513.3 15.3 1984–85 563.5 16.4 545.1 15.9 1985–863 599.1 17.2 582.6 16.7 1986–873 621.6 17.4 609.2 17.1 1 From the "Annual Review of Government Funded R & D" (HMSO). Since universities' research activities cannot be clearly distinguished, and thus the UGC's objectives in funding the expenditure cannot be clearly distinguished from its wider objectives in funding the university gross domestic product figures have been used to produce an index which illustrates how teachers salaries compare when they are related to average income levels in their respective countries.
separately identified, since UGC recurrent grant is only one element in universities' general income. The following table shows estimated expenditure by universities in support of R and D from general income in each year since 1977–78, the earliest for which the information is readily available, together with public expenditure on the civil science budget via the research councils in each year since 1970–71; and the proportions which these sums represent of total public spending on higher education, which is not readily available for years prior to 1974–75.
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system, the assignment of resources to research for the purpose of the review is based on a notional attribution of universities' departmental and central expenditure between research and teaching. 2 Includes recurrent and capital expenditure on universities, local authority and other institutions of advanced further education and mandatory anddiscretionary student awards in the United Kingdom. Does not include expenditure on the research councils. Estimated for 1974–75 to 1977–78. 3 Estimates for 1985–86 and 1986–87.
§ Mr. Formanasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will describe the various performance indicators used by his Department to measure the efficiency of higher education and the value for money obtained in return for the allocation of public funds.
§ Mr. WaldenBetween 1979–80 and 1985–86 the number of home full-time and part-time students in higher education in Great Britain increased by about 140,000, with no increase in public expenditure in real terms. Over the same period the annual output of graduates each year increased by about 22,000. That represents a real increase in efficiency and value for money.
Information on the development of a wide range of performance indicators for higher education is given in annex B to "The Development of Higher Education into the 1990s" (Cmnd. 9524) published last year. Further work is being carried out jointly by the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Principals and the University Grants Committee and I am sending my hon. Friend a copy of a report produced recently by a working group under the chairmanship of Professor Sir Mark Richmond.