Joe McHugh (Donegal North East, Fine Gael)
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Question 282: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if progress will be made by her in respect of funding for Duchenne research in view of the success of the pilot programme using the exon skipping technology at the National University of Ireland Maynooth and further in view of the support the Joint Committee for Health and Children has given and the fact that she has been receiving representations on this matter since 2006; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4317/09]

John Moloney (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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The Health Research Board (HRB) is the national agency which funds health research. In 2006, the Medical Research Charities Group (MRCG) and the HRB joined forces to develop a new funding scheme to improve patient health through research. Based on this, the HRB issued a call to charities for applications in 2006. Following international peer review, MRCG and the HRB issued co-funding for two projects with Muscular Dystrophy Ireland, one to the Imperial College in London — the exon skipping trial — and the other to the project referred to by the Deputy in NUI Maynooth.

I have been advised by the HRB that another MRCG/HRB funding call has opened to all research charities, including Muscular Dystrophy Ireland and Duchenne Ireland. However, it is up to each charity to solicit and pre-review applications for submission to the HRB. The HRB is scheduled to receive the applications in June 2009. All applications received will be assessed on the basis of excellence and impact.