§ Mr. Andrew MitchellTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement about progress on LINK.
Mr. JacksonThe Government attach great importance to LINK, which aims to increase the benefits to the United Kingdom economy from Government-funded research by encouraging collaboration between industry and the science base.
I am pleased to announce today a major new LINK programme in structural composites. Collaborative research in this area is vital to ensure that United Kingdom industry is well placed to adopt these new materials in a cost effective way.
This programme will develop both new and existing expertise, and will widen the use of such materials within United Kingdom industry. The use of advanced composites as structural components is likely to have a major impact in the future.
128WA key aim of the programme is to co-ordinate, and stimulate existing and new United Kingdom R & D in composite materials with particular emphasis on structural applications. It will support research which will meet industry's future demands for composites with improved properties, more efficient processability and lower cost.
More than 40 companies and over 20 science base organisations have already indicated that they wish to be involved in individual collaborative research projects. Special efforts will be made to encourage the involvement of small and medium sized firms.
The structural composites programme will raise the level of United Kingdom activity at a time when national programmes are being undertaken within Europe, Japan and the USA and will complement R & D work being undertaken through the European Community's BRITE/EURAM initiative.
This programme, the 14th to be announced under LINK, will be jointly funded by the Department of Trade and Industry (£14 million) and the Science and Engineering Research Council (£6 million); matching support from industry will be needed for this £40 million, five-year programme.