Mr. Alan W. WilliamsTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what percentage of Britain's gross domestic product was devoted to civil scientific research(a) in 1978–79 and (b) 1988–89.
Mr. JacksonThis information is not available in the form requested since details of spending by industry on civil scientific research are not collected centrally. In 1988–89 public expenditure on civil research and development was estimated to be 0.52 per cent. of gross domestic product compared with about 0.6 per cent. in 1978–79.