§ Mr. TylerTo ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) when she expects to publish the Atkinson report on the future of the Institute of Food Research; what were the terms of reference; and if she will make a statement on the Government's response to its recommendations; [38350]
(2) what impact the establishment of the Food Standards Agency will have on the role of the Institute of Food Research; [38346]
§ Mr. BattleThe Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) set up a working group, chaired by Professor Bernard Atkinson, with the following terms of reference
to assess the extent to which the programme of work at the Institute of Food Research (IFR) contributes to the need for underpinning food research identified by BBSRC, the food industry and others;to examine the effectiveness of the present two-site operation, and the strengths and weaknesses of alternative arrangements, including the strengthening of organisational links between the IFR laboratories and their respective universities;to make recommendations as appropriate for the organisational structure of the IFR and to identify any additional management and scientific skills required to ensure its future effectiveness.It is for the BBSRC Council to take decisions on the future of the IFR, and subsequent action as necessary. The Council considered the working group's report on 10 February, and issued a press release the following day giving details of its conclusions to date.
353WI understand that the report was in the nature of advice to the Council and Chief Executive, and contained commentary that would be commercially damaging if published, as well as references to individuals. The BBSRC is therefore not inclined to publish the report. However, once final decisions are taken in the light of the further analysis of options for the future development of the IFR, currently being undertaken by the Chief Executive, BBSRC intends to publish the rationale for those decisions.
The White Paper "The Food Standards Agency: A Force for Change" made it clear that basic and strategic research into food would continue to be funded by the Research Councils and carried out by Research Council institutes, other institutes and universities as at present. The Institute of Food Research (IFR) will continue to be sponsored and funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.
The Food Standards Agency will be responsible for determining its own research needs and commissioning research where it thinks best. I understand that the BBSRC working group, chaired by Professor Atkinson, recommended that a new strategic plan should be established in close partnership with the major users and beneficiaries of the IFR's research, and in particular that discussions should begin as soon as possible with the Agency to ensure that the IFR's research effectively underpins the Agency's work. The BBSRC Council agreed that the future development of the IFR and its scientific programme should be considered in the light of this and other recommendations from the working group, and the further analysis is proceeding accordingly.