HC Deb 10 December 1997 vol 302 cc617-9W
Mrs. Ewing

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans he has to appoint a professor of nursing research at the Scottish Office Department of Health; and if he will make a statement. [18817]

Mr. Galbraith

I have no plans to appoint a professor of nursing research at the Scottish Office Department of Health.

My Chief Scientist's office sponsor the Nursing Research Initiative in Scotland which is progressing nursing research in Scotland admirably. It is headed by Professor Jennifer Hunt.

I do not believe that the appointment of a professor of nursing at The Scottish Office would contribute further to nursing research in Scotland at this time.

Mrs. Ewing

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish the total expenditure by his Department on(a) research and (b) nursing research within the NHS in Scotland for each year since 1990 broken down by health board. [18663]

Mr. Galbraith

The Chief Scientist Office (CSO) of the Management Executive of the NHS in Scotland has responsibility for managing funds which support research activity to further the development of health care in Scotland. Details of CSO expenditure for each year since 1990 are given in the attached table 1a.

Since 1994–95, the CSO has funded the Nursing Research Initiative for Scotland (NRIS) in Glasgow and, before that, the Nursing Research Unit (NRU) in Edinburgh specifically for nursing research. In addition, other CSO-funded research includes nursing research. It is possible only to distinguish nursing research funding in recent years, as shown in Table lb. (It should be noted that nursing grants awarded in-year can be spent over a number of years).

It is not possible to break down the expenditure in Tables la and b by health board. NRIS is a national body (as was NRU before it), and other research funding frequently crosses health board boundaries and is collaborative.

Information regarding expenditure by health boards and NHS Trusts to support research infrastructural costs is not readily available prior to 1995–96. From that year, NHS Trusts in Scotland were asked to declare their expenditure to support research. As a result, the declared amount of £27,743 thousand for each of the years 1995–96 and 1996–97 was allocated to Trusts. Details of allocation by health board area are given in the attached Table 2. Costs specific to nursing cannot readily be broken down by health board area but totalled £0.7 million in the Declaration.

Table 1a: CSO research expenditure
£000
Year NRU/NRIS Other research CSO expenditure
1990–91 190.9 5,366.1 5,557
1991–92 195.7 6,368.3 6,564
1992–93 248.1 8,401.9 8,650
1993–94 122.4 9,615.6 9,738
1994–95 15.9 10,046.1 10,062
1995–96 166.4 10,067.6 10,234
1996–97 100.9 10,416.1 10,517
Totals 1,040.3 60,281.7 61,322

Table 1b: Funds committed to nursing research in recent years
£000
Year Grant
1993–94 690
1994–95 190
1995–96 512
1996–97 434
Total 1,826

Table 2: CSO support fund allocation
Health Board 1995–96

£000

1996–97

£000

Argyll and Bute 12.4 12.4
Ayrshire and Arran 246 246
Fife 28 28
Forth Valley 41 41
Grampian 5,643 5,643
Greater Glasgow 10,956 10,956
Highland 13 13
Lanarkshire 55 55
Lothian 7,124 7,124
Tayside 3,626 3,626
Total 27,743 27,743