Chancellor Promises Life Sciences Investment In Budget
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The Budget attracted much debate and no little criticism over its tax-raising nature, but one sector that may be quite pleased with the statement is life sciences.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves promised £520 million in the form of a Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund, alongside a decision to maintain current rates of research and development tax relief.
As Pharmaceutical-technology.com reports, this news has gone down well in the sector. Among those welcoming the news was the CEO of the UK Bioindustry Association Steve Bates.
He said: “Today’s Budget rightly puts the life sciences sector at the heart of UK economic growth. In a tough fiscal environment, Chancellor Rachel Reeves recommitted to R&D tax credits at current rates.”
Mr Bates also expressed delight to see that the new Innovative Manufacturing Fund website had opened within one hour of Ms Reeves delivering her statement in Parliament.
It may be argued that the previous government was also supportive of life sciences, not least in its tax relief for research and development, and it was notable that all the main party manifestos highlighted the importance of life sciences.
This support for the sector from the new government has also been noted in an article for the Health Service Journal by David Montgomery, medical director for Ipsen UK & Ireland.
He noted that Labour “clearly sees life sciences as a critical, high-potential sector and is sending all the right messages about supporting growth and innovation.”
However, Mr Montgomery argued, while the new administration will naturally want to “stamp its own mark” on policy, “part of the job will be implementing much of the work that was started under the previous Conservative administration.”
In particular, he pointed to the O’Shaughnessy review of the health of clinical commercial trials in the UK, which indicated that standards had slipped behind Britain’s competitors, although signs of improvement have been seen. Mr Montgomery said the review’s recommendations for improvements should be fully implemented.