Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much was spent from the public purse on each category of eye research by the (a) National Institute for Health Research and (b) Medical Research Council in each year since 2010.

The Department’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and the Medical Research Council (MRC) welcome funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including eye research; it is not usual practice to ring-fence funds for particular topics or conditions. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality.

Total spending on eye research from 2009/10 to 2016/17 by the NIHR was £113.7 million; and by the MRC from 2010/11 to 2016/17 was £70.4 million. The NIHR and MRC were not able to provide spend broken down by the categories requested. However, information on individual projects funded by the NIHR can be found at:

https://www.journalslibrary.nihr.ac.uk/programmes/

And by the MRC at:

http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk/