§ 135. Dr. Kim HowellsTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what encouragement and support is being offered by the Government to research being undertaken in the United Kingdom into the causes, effects and treatment of asthma.
Mr. JacksonThe Medical Research Council, the Government's main agency for the promotion of medical and related biological research in this country, is always willing to consider soundly based proposals for research funding in competition with other applications. In 1988–89, the last financial year for which figures are available, the council spent £756,000 on research projects which are in whole or in part relevant to asthma. In addition to this, university departments and medical schools, with support from University Funding Council block grants and health authorities, may be undertaking relevant research but information on this is not collected centrally.