WIREDGOV

The House of Commons Science and Technology Committee has yesterday published a report following its inquiry into the role of universities in commercialising their research (Note 1).

David Sweeney, HEFCE's Director of Research and Knowledge Exchange, said:

'We welcome the Select Committee's support for HEFCE’s Higher Education Innovation Funding (HEIF) as a crucial element in effective research commercialisation. We also welcome the emphasis the committee places on maintaining the excellence of the university research base. These are areas in which HEFCE plays a central role and which, subject to Parliamentary approval, will be taken on by a new organisation, Research England, from next April.

'The committee's report picks up on many points from the McMillan Review of Technology Transfer, which was supported by HEFCE and which we are working with others to implement.

'The report also highlights the potential of the konfer platform, an extensive online resource developed by the National Centre for Universities and Business with support from HEFCE and RCUK, to play a key role in facilitating business-university collaboration.'

Notes

• Read the report
• See more information about HEFCE's work to support research commercialisation and technology transfer
• Learn about key issues in knowledge exchange on the HEFCE blog