Montreal

The Medical Research Council of Canada (MRC) and the country's research-based pharmaceutical companies have announced significant increases for the second phase of a joint research programme, which has quadrupled in size since its introduction in 1993.

The collaboration's budget has risen from Can$10 million (US$7 million) at most each year at its beginning to more than Can$40 million today.

Phase I has generated Can$237 million for health research. The second five-year phase will introduce several new and improved programmes, and the proportion of funding by the partners will change.

For training and salary awards, the MRC contributed Can$1 for every Can$4 from industry in the first phase; each will contribute half the cost in the second phase. In funding operating grants, the MRC also contributed Can$1 for every Can$4 from industry, but its second-phase contribution will be Can$2 for every Can$1 from industry.

New operating fellowship awards of up to Can$49,000 a year for three years will be available for scientists in clinical investigation and interdisciplinary research, plus up to Can$30,000 in research allowances in the first year. University–industry research chairs will also be created, at a cost of up to Can$140,000 a year plus operating funds.

Funding ratios for clinical trials have been left at Can$1 from MRC to Can$4 from industry. But provision will be made for ‘add-on studies’ to allow additional research, with infrastructure costs being absorbed by the larger study.

Marc Lepage, a spokesman for the MRC, says that, although it is impossible to estimate the total amount that the second phase of the programme will generate, the MRC would be “very disappointed” if they “only made $237 million”.