§ Dr. StrangTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list the strategic plant breeding research activities that have been supported by her Department in the last 10 years; and what the(a) location and (b) amount of support provided by her Department for each project was in each year of the project's existence. [161990]
§ Mr. BradshawA table showing Defra's plant breeding research projects since the formation of the Department have been placed in the Library of the1004W House. Details of the research providers, and their funding in each year are provided. A full list of the relevant MAFF research projects from 1994 to 2001 can be provided if required.
Defra's current research underpinning crop breeding is informed by an external assessment of the role of publicly funded plant breeding research. The project entitled 'The Role of Future Public Research' investment in the Genetic Improvement of UK Grown Crops was completed in September 2002. The assessment provides a strong rationale for public investment in plant breeding research to support sustainable development in farming and has informed the Defra Science and Innovation Strategy. It has been widely distributed within the research and plant breeding community, and is available on the Defra website.
Defra's current portfolio centres around the use of public research funds to revitalise public-good plant breeding through partnerships between plant breeders and the research base.