The BioIndustry Association (BIA) is attending today’s life sciences summit with the Prime Minister Gordon Brown; Lord Mandelson the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform; Angela Eagle the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury; Alan Johnson the Secretary of State for Health and Lord Paul Drayson the Minister of State for Science and Innovation.
BIA Chairman, Dr Clive Dix, BIA Chief Executive Aisling Burnand and BIA Board members Glyn Edwards and Dr John Brown are joining representatives from the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI), in a bid to get commitment from the highest levels of Government to act now to ensure the future of the British bioscience sector.
The BIA believes that creating the right environment for bioscience companies to thrive would present a real opportunity to ensure high value added jobs remain in the UK and could ensure future investment in bio-industry in the UK. The current situation is grave - approximately a third of publicly quoted UK bioscience companies have less than six months cash remaining.
At the summit the BIA is asking the Prime Minister to act now to implement the recommendations in the Bioscience Innovation and Growth Team’s Review and Refresh of Bioscience 2015, especially the funding measures as a priority for example:
• Extend R&D tax credits
• Provide incentives for established pharmaceutical companies to jointly invest alongside government and VCs in a fund specifically for start-ups and early stage companies
• Encourage established pharmaceutical companies to invest in British bioscience companies by either off-setting losses against tax or through a tax relief on investment made
• Encourage spin-outs from established pharma to take place in the UK by providing tax incentives, brokerage facilities and rewarding academic collaboration.
• Launch an IP “royalty-box” type scheme to encourage the retention and exploitation of life science IP in the UK Dr Clive Dix, said:
“The UK Government has invested billions in the UK science base. We now have a real opportunity to translate our excellence in bioscience into innovative medicines and therapies as well as creating high value-added jobs and making a return to the UK economy. We can only do this with immediate Government action.”
BioIndustry Association
Established in 1989, the BIA (BioIndustry Association) exists to encourage and promote a financially sound and thriving bioscience sector within the UK economy and concentrates its efforts on emerging enterprise and the related interests of companies with whom such enterprise trades.
With over 300 members, the BIA supports a wide range of sectors, majoring on the human health benefits of the technology and represents the interests of these innovative companies to a broad section of stakeholders from patient groups to politicians, advancing its members interests both within the UK and internationally to create a healthy UK bioscience sector which benefits society. For further information, please go to: www.bioindustry.org
