Influencing and shaping our sector | BIA update: October 2021 to January 2022

This quarter has seen the long-awaited Spending Review and Budget announcements, which put the sector into a strong position going into 2022. In Q4, we launched a report on the benefits of cell and gene therapies, exploring the challenges companies face in the UK’s evaluation and reimbursement system. We responded to consultations on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the context of inventorship and IP, and to proposals for the new Innovative Medicines Fund (IMF) announced last summer.

The Life Sciences Scale-Up Taskforce, established in Q3 to increase UK investors’ participation in the sector, had its third meeting with Secretary of State Kwasi Kwarteng and produced its first work package with tangible recommendations on how to attract the right investment into the sector. We brought together the UK’s bioprocessing community at our annual bioprocessUK Conference in Cardiff and, together with the MHRA, the team delivered its annual Regulatory Innovation Conference virtually, with the keynote address delivered by Lord Kamall.

Starting off the new year, Steve Bates attended the virtual annual J.P. Morgan healthcare conference, where the Prime Minister together with Lord Prior as Chair of the NHS sold the UK life science opportunity to the globe. Read on for more details on these activities and much more that the BIA delivered in Q4.