Major new injection of healthcare research funding announced

The government has announced that 120 million pounds in healthcare research funding is set to be made available for projects carried out over the next five years.

This National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) scheme aims to promote investigations into innovative treatments or new models of care for patients with long-term diseases.

It will build on previous successful NIHR health research that has led to improvements in treatments for patients that are now widely used in the NHS, such as a new blood clotting drug and a questionnaire to improve follow-up care for stroke patients.

Health secretary Jeremy Hunt said: "Britain is one of the best research centres in the world and it is important that we harness the skills and creativity in this sector to really improve the lives of those who use the NHS."

This comes after the government announced earlier this month that five million pounds of funding for businesses that come up with new products or services for mental health or terminally ill patients.