Hansard

Health: Stem Cell Therapy

Volume 693: debated on Wednesday 20 June 2007

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Lord Alton of Liverpool

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 22 May (WA 90–1), why the focus for their stem cell funding is on potential clinical efficacy; and why no funding bias has been made towards work developing adult stem cells. [HL4129]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Trade and Industry
(Lord Truscott)

The Medical Research Council (MRC) supports a wide range of research on stem cells. Research on embryonic, foetal and adult stem cells is essential to move the field forward; discoveries in one area will inform others and accelerate progress.

The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) supports a wide range of basic (non-medical) research for both adult and embryonic stem cells in model organisms (eg: worm, fly, frog, bird, and mouse) and humans. Both the MRC and the BBSRC allocate funding in response mode following peer review on the basis of scientific quality and potential impact.