Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department has spent on research into arthritis treatment in each of the last five years.

Over the past five financial years, the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has invested more than £100 million in funding and support for arthritis 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. Therefore, future spend on arthritis research over the next five years is undetermined.