Mr. Adleyasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what assistance is being given by his Department to research into a cure for cancer.
Mr. John PattenResearch into a cure for cancer lies mainly in the field of biomedical research, and the main Government-funded body supporting work in that field is the Medical Research Council from its grant-in-aid under the Science Vote of the Department of Education and Science. The Department does not generally fund biomedical research but has a close relationship with the Medical Research Council through which the council takes account of health departments' priorities when formulating its programmes of support. Research into cancer has been a long-standing priority for the health departments and the council is supporting a substantial programme of work in this subject.