§ Dr. FoxTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been spent on AIDS research in each of the last six years. [127345]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonFunding for research on AIDS is provided from a number of different sources, including the Government, charities and industry. The Department of Health does not routinely collect information on all research expenditure. The figures shown in the table for estimated Government spend on research relating to AIDS are approximate.
Year £million 1997–98 15.4 1998–99 16.2 1999–2000 20.2 2000–01 22.9 2001–02 20.4 A figure for 2002–03 is not yet available. The figure for 2000–01 is higher than the figure (£21.3 million) given the former Under-Secretary of State for Health, my hon. Friend the Member for Salford (Ms Blears) on 16 July 2002, Official Report, column 212W, as the estimate of spend that the Medical Research Council included in this earlier figure was provisional. The figures for all years include estimated spend by Department of Health national research programmes and arm's length bodies. Management of much of the research supported by National Health Service research and development funding is devolved and expenditure at project level is not held centrally by the Department. In addition to specific projects, the Department also provides support for research commissioned by charities and the research councils that takes place in the NHS. The total investment is therefore greater.