A review by MPs of proposals on how £1bn (€1.5bn; $1.9bn) worth of publicly funded health research should be allocated in the United Kingdom has raised concerns about introducing targets to set research priorities.

The cross party Science and Technology Committee has broadly welcomed the conclusions reached by Sir David Cooksey in his review published in December (BMJ 2006;333:1239, 16 Dec, doi: 10.1136/bmj.39059.559213.DB) on how healthcare research can be improved to bring more tangible benefits to patients.

The committee says it has reservations about some aspects of the proposals, however, and will be taking “a close interest in reviewing progress and how the new institutional arrangements will work in practice.”

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