§ Dr. IddonTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she 1209W has taken to enhance science in her Department since the publication of the Government's science strategy, Investing in Innovation. [162251]
§ Alun MichaelScience plays an essential, and increasingly important role in underpinning and informing Defra's policies across the three areas of environment, food and rural affairs. Defra is therefore strongly committed to maintaining and enhancing its science capabilities, in line with our Science and Innovation Strategy (Delivering the Evidence) published in May 2003. Our R&D budget is ring fenced at over £150 million per annum, and are aiming to protect this in real terms across the SR2002 period and beyond. We also spend in excess of £170 million per annum on a wide range of other types of science, including scientific advice, field trials, knowledge transfer, surveillance and monitoring.
Defra is committed to developing its scientific capabilities and performance, building on the recommendations of the SR2002 Cross Cutting Review of Science and Research and the Government's Investing in Innovation strategy. Defra's Chief Scientific Adviser is the corporate sponsor for a number of on-going science initiatives designed to ensure that:
we are carrying out the right scientific activities to underpin current and future policy needs and to anticipate emerging risks and opportunities;the scientific advice we obtain, and the science activities supporting it, is of a high quality;we have access to the right expertise and skills to procure and interpret scientific information, and that scientific advice is used appropriately in the policy making process; andDefra science is open and transparent, and its aims and results are effectively communicated.Our rural affairs approach in both policy and delivery is informed by high quality research and analysis. The publication ("Social and economic change and diversity in rural England") in January was the first of a series from the Rural Research Centre led by Birkbeck College but including academics from other institutions.
Defra's next Science and Innovation Strategy (due to be published spring 2005) will, among other things, address innovation in support of policy priorities and sustainable wealth creation, including technology foresight and horizon scanning, and support for technology transfer and innovation.