asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what progress has been made in setting up a scheme of industrial scholarship.

My right hon. Friend wrote in the summer to some 40 industrial concerns asking them to support a joint industrial scholarships scheme. The response has been encouraging. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland has written similarly to Scottish firms. I am now setting up a small committee, including representatives from industry, to settle the details of the scheme. I hope the first scholarships will be awarded for the academic year 1978–79.