§ Mr. SwireTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what his policy is on the diversity of academic courses and research at universities in the UK. [125138]
§ Alan JohnsonUniversities in the UK are independent, autonomous bodies and are responsible for deciding the range and mode of courses they offer, taking account of student demand and their institutional mission. The Higher Education Funding Council for England and its equivalent bodies in the devolved administrations allocate research funding selectively to universities according to the quality and volume of their research activity.
§ Mr. SwireTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what measures he is taking to promote the teaching and research of specialist and emergency subjects at universities in the UK. [125140]
§ Alan JohnsonThe Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) allocates teaching funding to higher education institutions (HEIs) in England through a formula relating to the number of students and the types of courses they are taking. The HEFCE has also allocated special funding for 'minority subjects' which it deems to be in national interest but which might otherwise be at risk because of the small number of students taking them.
Research funding is allocated to HEIs according to their success in the Research Assessment Exercise. In addition to the main allocations, the HEFCE provides 147W research capability funding to emerging subjects where the research base is not as strong as in more established subjects.