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Pregnancy: Drugs

Asked by Mrs Sharon HodgsonLabourDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled Answered 11 November 2025UIN 87255

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what (a) grants and 9b) funding her Department has allocated to the Medical Research Council for research into anti-seizure medications in pregnancy since 2018.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan

Since 2018, the Medical Research Council (MRC), which is part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), has committed £2.7 million to a research project developing a new anti-seizure drug to the point of regulatory submission for first-in-human trials. The treatment is intended to improve upon the effectiveness of the main existing anti-seizure treatment, valproate, to avoid valproate’s harmful effects on unborn children.

DSIT is investing a record £58.5 billion on R&D between 2026/27 and 2029/30. UKRI will deliver an expected £38.6 billion of R&D investment from 2026/27 to 2029/30, rising to nearly £10 billion per annum by the end of the period.  A more detailed breakdown of UKRI’s budgets will be published later this year.

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