§ VISCOUNT SOULBURYasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will announce the outcome of the discussions with the British Academy on the proposals in their Report on research in the humanities and social sciences.
§ VISCOUNT HAILSHAMYes, my Lords. In the light of these discussions, and at the suggestion of Her Majesty's Government, the British Academy prepared an outline scheme under which the Academy itself would administer an additional grant for the support, in various ways, of research in the humanities. The scheme excludes the social sciences, which present a different problem involving a wider field of Government interest.
Her Majesty's Government propose, subject to the approval of Parliament, that an additional grant of £25,000 should be made to the British Academy in 1963–64 to enable them to begin implementing this scheme. We envisage that in, say, two or three years' time the figure might rise to a steady level of £50,000 a year. Any extra administrative costs incurred by the Academy in administering the scheme would be found out of the grant.
The British Academy have said that they warmly welcome an arrangement on these lines. Her Majesty's Government for their part appreciate the efforts of the British Academy both in presenting the problem constructively to them and in devising the means of dealing with it.
House adjourned at fourteen minutes past eight o'clock.