§ Sir David PriceTo ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what measures he is taking to promote the application of the principles of superconductivity in British industry.
§ Mr. ButcherOn 21 January 1988, the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry announced a £16 million three-year programme to stimulate collaborative industrial research on superconductivity. The DTI will provide up to 50 per cent. of the programme cost and industry will find the balance. Work supported under the programme will include research into materials and device applications, as well as research aimed at producing superconductors that work at room temperature. The programme has been developed in consultation with the electronics and electrical engineering industries, and complements the Science and Engineering Research Council's programme of academic research in HEIs, including the first university research centre at Cambridge. The DTI and SERC have together established a National Committee for Superconductivity, announced in October 1987. Chaired by Sir Martin Wood, the national committee co-ordinates support for industrial and academic research and advises on national policy for superconductors.