I was in the Commons yesterday boosting support for the Life Sciences sector, a cluster of firms with our country’s best minds with the potential to become our most dynamic exporters. It’s also vital that Britain continues to lead in this so we can make more treatments and therapies available and create the highly skilled, well-paying jobs and successful new companies that we really need in our economy.
Life sciences in the UK, thanks to Britain’s history and culture of innovation, remain on the cutting edge of global research and invention and we must get the funding, regulation and policy mix right to make sure we stay there.
I asked the Minister, George Freeman MP: “The most promising sector in the British economy at the moment is life sciences, yet historically start-ups in this sector have had difficulty attracting venture capital. Will the Minister update us on progress he is making on getting this vital resource into this vital sector?”
The Minister replied: “That gives me a chance to congratulate my hon. Friend on his leadership as deputy Mayor of the MedCity initiative in London. The life sciences sector is growing fast. Last year, we hit a 17-year financing high, with more than £1.7 billion raised for early-stage companies. The challenge now is to make sure that those emerging businesses grow into substantial global companies, which is where my focus lies.”
His response shows that the Government is committed to Life Sciences, will continue to help the sector attract funding and catapult new companies into global champions for Britain. As Chair of the Life Science APPG and an advocate for science funding, I will keep pushing to make sure that this stays at the top of the agenda.
You can see the question here.