§ Mrs. Winifred Ewingasked the Secretary of State for Industry what sums have been provided from Government sources in each of the last five years to the Scottish Council (Development and Industry) and the National Research and Development Corporation, respectively.
§ Mr. MeacherThe function of the National Research Development Corporation is to assist, where the public interest so requires, the development or exploitation of inventions deriving from public and private sources. The sums provided to NRDC in the form of repayable, interest-bearing advances and interest relief grants, in respect of the last five complete financial years were:
(£000) Advances Interest Relief 1969–70 … … 4,880 1,165 1970–71 … … 2,850 1,458 1971–72 … … 200 1,577 1972–73 … … Nil 1,555 1973–74 … … Nil 657 Over the same period NRDC repaid to the Government earlier advances totalling almost £4 million and paid interest on advances amounting to more than £8 million.
I am advised by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland that in the financial year 1970–71 the Scottish Council (Development and Industry) received a grant in aid of £10,000 towards the cost of its efforts to attract industry to Scotland. In 1971–72 it received £70,000 and in each of the years 1972–73 and 1973–74 the sum of £100,000. These grants were for the purpose of maintaining a campaign to attract industrial investment from Europe, and therefore 620W performed a function entirely different from that of NRDC. In January 1974 the Secretary of State for Scotland offered the council grant in aid of up to £150,000 per year for the three years to 1976–77 towards the cost of a worldwide campaign to attract industrial investment to Scotland.