asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is current public expenditure in the United Kingdom on animal breeding research for agricultural purposes; and how this compares with expenditure for the same purposes in other European Economic Community countries.

Public expenditure in the United Kingdom on animal breeding research for agricultural purposes in 1980–81 was approximately £7·7 million. Animal breeding has been taken to include genetics, physiological aspects of reproduction and practical systems of animal breeding. I regret that comparable figures for other European Economic Community countries are not available.