Written question asked by Gareth Thomas (Labour) on Monday, 19 December 2011, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 10 January 2012. It was answered by Lord Willetts (Conservative) on Wednesday, 11 January 2012 on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

Foresight

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding from his Department Foresight (a) received in 2010-11 and (b) will receive in 2011-12; what estimate he has made of the number of full-time equivalent staff working for Foresight in each year; and if he will make a statement.

Answer: Foresight is part of the Government Office for Science, which is a semi-autonomous unit housed within BIS and funded from the BIS vote. The Foresight Programme helps Government make decisions today which are robust to future uncertainties. The estimated number of staff working for Foresight in 2010/11 was 31 and for 2011/12, it is 28. The total funding for staff and to fund the programme of activity in 2010/11 was £3.66 million, and is expected to be £3.74 million in 2011/12.

Secondary information