§ Dr. MoonieTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what responsibilities his Department has for the promotion of technology transfer from the public sector research base into industry.
§ Mr. Leigh[holding answer 1 December 1992]: As part of improving the competitiveness of United Kingdom industry the Department of Trade and Industry seeks to optimise the benefits to industry of work carried out in the science base. Technology transfer is an important aspect of this process.
The Department of Trade and Industry encourages technology transfer by offering direct help through a range of generic technology transfer programmes, for example, in biotechnology and information technology and also by 282W improving education/industry links, for example, the teaching company scheme. Overall, the Department spends some £100 million per year in support of technology transfer.