We do not accept these recommendations. 17. The Government should not be in the business of investigating research misconduct but should ensure it supports an effective research environment that can self- regulate and respond when misconduct is identified. 18. This needs to be addressed at a system-wide level and reproducibility should be one of a number of mechanisms to promote integrity. 19. In cases where there is intentional research misconduct (i.e. manipulating statistical results or falsification of data) the Government agrees that this should be taken extremely seriously. UKRI have published clear guidelines on what constitutes research misconduct and are responsible for ensuring that recipients of funding are aware of the requirements and reporting of research misconduct, and that these are openly stated.