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Written question asked by Dan Poulter (Conservative) on Wednesday, 17 June 2015, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 22 June 2015. It was answered by Greg Hands (Conservative) on Monday, 22 June 2015 on behalf of the Treasury.

Agriculture: Tax Allowances

Question

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal incentives his Department plans to put in place to stimulate growth in the science and technology industry to support British agriculture.

Answer

Government recognises the importance of science investment in boosting agricultural productivity and growth, which in turn affects competitiveness and real food prices. For firms undertaking research and development (R&D), the Government already has R&D tax credits in place to incentivise this investment. In 2012/13 R&D tax credits provided support to over 15,000 companies, supporting around £13.2bn of innovative investment.

Alongside this, the Government’s Agri-Tech Strategy (published July 2013) aims to make the UK a world leader in agricultural technology, innovation and sustainability. This includes allocation of over £320m to further build the pipeline of innovation from the laboratory to the farm; including £70m to support commercialisation projects through the Agri-Tech Catalyst, which the Government continues to invite bids for.

The Government also announced a further £400m Research Partnership Investment Fund competition at Budget 2015.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
2874
Session
2015-16
Subjects
Agriculture Tax allowances Technology Science
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk