Mandelson unveils plans for new drug development campus
Plans for a unique £37m Bioscience Campus in Stevenage, Hertfordshire
– funded in partnership by the Government, GlaxoSmithKline, The
Wellcome Trust, Technology Strategy Board and East of England
Development Agency – will be announced today by Business, Innovation and
Skills Secretary, Lord Mandelson.
The project aims to create a world-leading hub for early-stage
biotech companies, operating under a model of open-innovation and
collaboration.
The Campus will offer each company access to specialist skills,
equipment and expertise, to help stimulate innovation in drug
development. By sharing knowledge each company will also increase its
chance of success, while retaining its independence so entrepreneurship
can flourish.
Speaking ahead of the announcement at the Technology Strategy Board’s Innovate09 Conference, Lord Mandelson said:
“Innovation drives commercial invention; it pushes up
productivity; it is at the heart of growth. And this joint investment by
the public, private and charitable sectors recognises that innovation
will be decisive in Britain’s recovery.
“The Stevenage Campus represents a huge investment in the future of
Britain’s bioscience industry and is a strong new platform for the work
of our Office for Life Sciences. It will leverage our existing strengths
as a world leader in the sector, helping it to grow and reinforcing our
international competitiveness. And ultimately it will help us build
towards a stronger UK economy coming out of the global downturn.”
It’s estimated that development of the campus could create up to
1,500 new jobs, most of which will be high-skilled. It will initially be
home to around 25 companies, co-located with GlaxoSmithKline on its
existing research site, with plans to increase capacity at the park
fivefold over the next 10 years.
Andrew Witty, CEO of GlaxoSmithKline said:
“GSK is delighted to play a leading role in the creation of this
science park on our Stevenage site. Innovation is at the heart of the
life-sciences industry and this park will provide a supportive
environment where scientists in small biotech companies can tap into
GSK’s management and expertise in drug discovery while remaining
independent.
“This collaboration in turn will stimulate innovation that will
help ensure the UK remains a world-leader in the research and
development of important medicines.”
Sir Mark Walport, Director of the Wellcome Trust, said:
“We welcome this new public private partnership, which will
catalyse the development of new healthcare products. This initiative
will help us achieve an important part of our charitable mission, which
is to translate research into health benefit.
“The new Campus will provide state of the art facilities and
mentorship for research teams and start-up companies embedded at the
heart of GSK’s R&D facilities in Stevenage and near to academic
centres of excellence in the South East, including the developing UK
Centre for Medical Research and Innovation at St Pancras.”
Iain Gray from the Technology Strategy Board said:
“The future of healthcare depends on innovation, and it
increasingly depends on the fast reduction of new knowledge and ideas to
practical demonstration. The bioscience campus will enable a rapidly
developing field, where the UK has world leading science, to grow faster
than it might otherwise do and move quickly to commercial impact.”
Richard Ellis, Chair from East of England Development Agency said:
“EEDA has been working with GSK for the last 18 months to develop
and secure funding for the UK’s first open innovation campus for drug
discovery and development.
“Today’s announcement strengthens the region’s position as a world
leader in life sciences, it will create thousands of new jobs and
enable us to compete on the global stage. It’s a great example of how
regional interventions can stimulate projects of national significance
with a global outreach.”
The Campus is being part-funded with £11.7m from the UK Strategic
Investment Fund. The £750m fund was established in Budget ’09 as part of
the Government’s New Industry, New Jobs strategy to position the
economy for the global upturn by supporting projects in fields where the
UK has comparative strengths.
The UK Strategic Investment Fund – Interim Report is published
today. It sets out the principles behind the fund and the investment
commitments that have been made so far.
Notes to editors
- Total investment in the Campus stands at around £37.6m. On top
of the £11.7 SIF funding for the project, GlaxoSmithKline has granted
£10.9m; The Wellcome Trust has committed £6m; the Technology Strategy
Board is providing £5m and EEDA will look to contribute £4m. - New Industry, New jobs: Building Britain’s Future can be accessed at www.bis.gov.uk.
- The Technology Strategy Board is a business-led executive
non-departmental public body, established by the government. Its role is
to promote and support research into, and development and exploitation
of, technology and innovation for the benefit of UK business, in order
to increase economic growth and improve the quality of life. It is
sponsored by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).
For more information please visit www.innovateuk.org.
