Memorandum submitted by the Department
for Innovation, Universities and Skills
The Department for Innovation Universities and
Skills (DIUS) provides funding to Research Councils through the
Science Budget to support the whole range of their activities.
It is up to each Research Council to set its priorities in a Delivery
Plan agreed with DIUS.
DIUS monitors the activities of the Research Councils
and Research Councils UK (RCUK) through a performance management
system. All the Research Councils and RCUK have agreed annual
delivery plans which set out targets and milestones, monitored
and reviewed every quarter by DIUS and fed into the business planning
cycle.
Research Councils develop expertise in particular
areas of research and associated policy issues, during the course
of their work, and on this basis have responded from time to time
to inquiries where such expertise is relevant. DIUS accepts that
in this particular case it would be appropriate for RCUK to provide
such expert input in support of Defra's lead on policy issues
relating to Systematics and Taxonomy.
January 2008
| 
