§ Dr. MoonieTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what assistance his Department provides for patenting or licensing of any products or processes developed from work funded by the Department.
§ Mr. Leigh[holding answer 15 December 1992]: The Department is aware of the importance of protecing intellectual property arising from work for which it provides financial assistance. Recipients of DTI funding are required to take reasonable steps to exploit the results of their projects, including making arrangements for intellectual property rights. The scope exists under the collaborative schemes to include in eligible costs reasonable patenting costs incurred by small and medium-sized companies, and in the case of SMART and SPUR, the expense of patenting in the United Kingdom and overseas can be claimed as an eligible cost.