Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what funds they have made available for research into, and trials of, new antibiotics.

Research into new antibiotics falls within a wider portfolio of research and development to address the problem of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Since 2014, the United Kingdom Government has invested more than £360 million in AMR research. The United Kingdom Research and Innovation councils support basic science relevant to AMR, including research into new antibiotics. In addition, through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), the Department invests in applied health research to evaluate public health measures, healthcare interventions and health services addressing the use of antimicrobial drugs. This includes research to evaluate strategies to incentivise industry to develop new antibiotics. The NIHR also supports AMR research for the primary benefit of people in low- and middle-income countries, using Official Development Assistance funding.