Abstract
In the UK, research in primary care has become a priority for support within the National Health Service (NHS) and other funding agencies, such as the Medical Research Council (MRC). This has resulted in the creation of a range of interventions aimed at contributing to research activity, capacity and utilization in primary care. It is now timely to reflect on the appropriateness and effectiveness of these interventions and to consider, for the future, what are the desired outcomes (ends) of primary care research and how we can best achieve them (means).