§ Andrew GeorgeTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her Answer of 26 June 2003,Official Report, column 922W, on biotechnology, how much her Department spent in (a) sponsorships, (b) grants and (c) other financial assistance to biotechnology companies in 2001–02. [125384]
§ Jacqui Smith[holding answer 22 July 2003]: For the most recent financial year (2001/02), the Department's expenditure on grants and other financial assistance for the biotechnology industry sector in the UK was approximately £16 million (excluding Research Councils' funding).
Information on the expenditure by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and the Medical Research Council (MRC) was provided in my answer to the hon. Member on 26 June 2003, Official Report, columns 921–22W.
It is not possible to give precise information, due to the lack of a generally accepted definition of biotechnology and the differences in the ways individual Research Councils analyse their annual expenditure.