§ Sir Gerard VaughanTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what has been the expenditure in each of the last five years, from his departmental vote on the dual funding system for scientific research; and what is the provision for this in the current year.
§ Mr. Alan HowarthUnder the dual support system for funding scientific research, universities receive funds from the Department's vote both through institutional funding from UFC and specific project grants from the research councils.
Funding from the UFC in support of research council projects is not separately identified in the UFC's allocations to universities. The estimated total UFC funding spent on scientific research over the period 1986–87 to 1989–90 was:
£million 1986–87 655 1987–88 695 1988–89 725 1989–90 785 Estimates for 1990–91 and 1991–92 taking account of outturn data on university spending are not yet available. However, the Government's plans provided for a year-on-year increase of some 10 per cent. in the total available public funding for universities through UFC recurrent grant and publicly funded tuition fees in each year. Within their overall allocations, it is for individual institutions to determine their spending on teaching and different types of research.
Actual spending by research councils on grants for research in universities and other bodies was as follows. The figures include grants for research in polytechnics and other higher education institutions, expenditure on interdisciplinary research centres and a small number of grants to other bodies which are outside the dual support system.
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£ thousands 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 AFRC 6,875 7,618 9,080 15,001 ESRC 12,652 14,205 15,502 18,950 MRC 35,164 38,073 44,512 46,742 NERC 4,664 6,924 6,794 8,624 SERC 99,507 121,811 123,010 151,384 Total 158,862 188,631 198,898 240,701 Source: Annual Appropriation Accounts.
Estimated total grants in 1990–91 and 1991–92 on the same basis are as follows:
£thousands 1990–91 1991–92 AFRC 15,679 16,172 ESRC 21,378 24,117 MRC 57,050 59,067 NERC 12,237 11,394 SERC 168,167 168,330 Total 275,167 279,330 Source: Supply Estimates 1991–92.