I would like to start my first life sciences newsletter since taking up my new post by recognising Earl Howe and David Willetts for the passion and commitment they have shown to UK life sciences.  I feel privileged to be given the opportunity to build on their previous work to make the UK one of the best places in the world for life sciences.  

The creation of a new Ministerial post for life sciences working across the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and Department of Health sends a very clear signal of the importance the Prime Minister and this government places on life sciences. The mission of this post is clear: to make the UK the best place in the world for the discovery, design and adoption of 21st Century medicines and healthcare innovations.  Over the next few months I hope to have the chance to meet many of you to capture your views on how to push forward this important agenda.  Supporting me to do this, in addition to the recently established joint Office for Life Sciences, I am pleased to welcome Will Cavendish, the Director General for the Department of Health’s Innovation, Growth and Technology Directorate.  This new Directorate will bring a welcome and renewed focus on the health and innovation with DH, and aligns neatly with the ambitions of the Strategy for UK Life Sciences. 

There have been a number of significant achievements over the past quarter – some of which are highlighted in this newsletter.  The sheer number clearly demonstrates continued success in boosting UK jobs and growth through the promotion of a vibrant, innovative and competitive health sector and the benefits of this to UK patients.

In June, at an event which followed on from the G7 summit earlier this year, the Prime Minister announced the creation of the UK Dementias Research Platform: the world’s largest study group for dementia research. This £16 million programme, including £4 million industry partnership funding, has been developed and will be led by the Medical Research Council. It aims to accelerate progress in dementia research, in particular research into the early detection, improved treatment and prevention of the condition.  Two million people are available to take part.

During July, David Willetts announced a £52 million investment in the Science Industry Partnership, which aims to create more than 7,800 education and skills opportunities in life sciences and chemicals over a two-year period.  The government will contribute £32.6 million, with employers providing more than £20 million in cash, and £31 million in-kind contributions.  The Partnership reflects a fundamental shift in the government’s approach to skills, where employers are encouraged to take greater ownership of the system to improve access to the skills their companies need for innovation and growth. Led by GSK, the partnership brings together over 100 employers ranging from Eisai and Johnson and Johnson, to small businesses across the biotech and medical technologies sectors.

On 25 June, the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Vince Cable, formally opened the Cell Therapy Catapult's new facilities at the Tower Wing of Guy's Hospital in London. With well-equipped and modular laboratories, the facilities have been designed to promote collaboration and innovation across the sector in the UK and globally. More information here.

The Prime Minister has appointed John Jeans as his most recent Life Sciences Champion. John is Chairman of the Council of Cardiff University and of Imanova (a unique translational imaging centre).  On taking up the appointment, John said:
“I am delighted to be given the opportunity to make a contribution to the work being done by the Office for Life Sciences in supporting new and innovative treatments for NHS patients. My focus on the medical technology sector is particularly exciting, as it has enormous potential to both improve the quality of health care delivery and to contribute to economic growth through industrial development.”

UK researchers will be granted access to a ‘virtual library’ of de-prioritised pharmaceutical compounds through a new partnership between the Medical Research Council (MRC) and seven global pharmaceutical companies - AstraZeneca, GSK, Janssen Research & Development LLC, Lilly, Pfizer, Takeda and UCB.  These companies will offer up compounds that have undergone some industry development but not progressed beyond early testing, often because they were not sufficiently effective against the target disease.  However, they may still be useful in research into other diseases with shared biological pathways. See more here.

In June, the government published a review of the regulatory framework governing pharmaceutical manufacturing and processing. The Focus on Enforcement review asked companies to identify unnecessary regulatory requirements.  The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency has committed to streamlining processes, increasing transparency and providing clearer advice to businesses. More information here.

I was delighted that my first visit as Minister was to open the £11.5 million Centrum building and the Virtual Technology Centre at the Norwich Research Park.  These new facilities have benefited from significant investment from BBSRC and will provide business and academia with shared access to high quality interaction space and pooled technology platforms.  More information here.

The 2014 Advanced Manufacturing Supply Chain Initiative (AMSCI) and the sixth round of Regional Growth Fund (RGF) both opened in June. More information is available here (AMSCI) and here (RGF). To date, the life science sector has secured awards totalling £22 million through AMSCI (to three separate projects) and £57 million of RGF funding (21 projects in total).

More than 70 cutting edge research projects have been chosen in the latest stage of funding awards from the Biomedical Catalyst. They include the development of a blood test to identify Alzheimer’s disease, a potential new gene therapy for Parkinson’s disease, an artificial blood substitute, and a wearable blanket providing light therapy for treating jaundice and psoriasis. To date, 226 Biomedical Catalyst awards have been made, totalling more than £170 million, matched by an additional £97 million of private investment.

This cutting-edge centre, with state-of the-art DNA and RNA sequencing capabilities brings together a consortium of government, university, NHS and industry partners.  It aims to create a unique and sustainable capability in stratified medicine, serving the health needs of the Scottish population, and supporting the development of new and better targeted medicines by pharmaceutical and biotech companies.   The centre will be based in temporary premises in Inchinnan until 2015 when it will move to the South Glasgow Hospitals Campus.  Read more about the SMS-IC.

As a major delivery partner for the 100,000 Genome Project, NHS England is putting arrangements in place with providers to supply and prepare the samples which form the basis of this research. During July, NHS England published a Prospectus for providers interested in applying for NHS Genomic Medicine Centre status.

On 3 July, David Willetts announced that this £87.7 million project would include a £25 million award from the UK Research Partnership Investment fund. The Institute will bring together the University of Cambridge with a broad range of industry and other partners to drive therapeutic breakthroughs in immune-related diseases and explore new strategies for the control of globally important pathogens. Read more here.

In June, Lord Carter was announced as NHS Procurement Champion. Lord Carter has already set out some of his early procurement priorities, including his intention to simplify the overall procurement landscape. His appointment has been welcomed by the Association of British Healthcare Industries and other industry bodies.