§ Mr. GrayTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has commissioned into loss of(a) smell and (b) taste, as a result of (i) sinusitis and (ii) influenza. [59149]
§ Ms JowellThe Department's policy research programme and the central National Health Service research and development programmes are not currently supporting any such research.
The Medical Research Council (MRC), which is funded by the Office of Science and Technology, commissions most of the Government's research into bio-medical and clinical issues. The MRC is always open to new sound scientific proposals in competition with other applications. In deciding priorities and taking decisions, the MRC takes account of the Department's priorities, together with input from the health research community in general. The Department's policy research programme supports the formulation of health and social care policy and the 559W NHS programmes support the needs of the health service. Records are not held centrally of all research carried out in the NHS.