Parkinson's disease charity opposes public spending cuts

A leading Parkinson's disease charity is leading a protest against public spending cuts for scientific research.

In a letter to the Times, Parkinson's UK joined 78 other charities in raising concerns over the cuts, which will seriously hamper progress in researching conditions like Parkinson's disease, it is claimed.

More than £1 billion in scientific research was funded by UK charities in the last 12 months, more than any other country, the charity reports.

Parkinson's director of research Dr Kieran Breen says that it is vital that the UK maintains its place as a medical research leader.

"Promising scientists will be deterred from coming to the UK to study, and we may lose our best brains to other countries with better facilities, which would be a tragedy," he said.

One in 500 people in the UK are living with Parkinson's disease, the charity estimates, equating to around 120,000 individuals.

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