BIVDA Comments on new Innovation Strategy

BIVDA Chief Executive Doris-Ann Williams has commented on the Government’s new Innovation Strategy, which aims to put Britain at the front of the global race to attract world-leading science expertise, highly skilled jobs and new products.

According to the Government, the UK is committed to increasing annual public investment on R&D to £22 billion. The private sector also plays a key role in boosting spending on R&D, which is an essential part of our country’s future prosperity and key to achieving key domestic priorities, from tackling climate change and boosting productivity, to levelling up opportunities across the UK and supporting businesses out of the pandemic. The pandemic has shown us that major challenges can be resolved by ambitious investment in science, technology, innovation and entrepreneurship, and has shown the public what British innovators can deliver when given ambitious support, freedom, and risk tolerance.

The Government is also outlining 7 strategic technologies to prioritise and build on our existing R&D strengths, including clean technologies, robotics, genomics and AI, where the UK has globally competitive advantage and industrial strength. The strategy outlines how the government will focus its efforts to support businesses and institutions at the cutting edge of innovation, setting out plans in four areas:

• Unleashing Business – fuelling businesses who want to innovate by ensuring effective access to private and public investment
• People – creating the most exciting place in the world for talented innovators
• Institutions and Places – ensuring R&D institutions serve the needs of businesses and promoting innovation in places across the UK
• Missions and Technologies – stimulating innovation in technology and missions that will provide the UK with a strategic advantage and will be critical to tackling some of our greatest challenges

Commenting on the launch, BIVDA Chief Executive Doris-Ann Williams said;

“BIVDA welcomes the publication of this ambitious Innovation Strategy which recognises that the UK must continue to be nimble if it is to attract global scientific talent, and develop the new products, treatments and technologies of the future. We especially welcome plans to use the British Business Bank’s Life Sciences Investment Programme to target the growth-stage funding gap faced by UK life science companies, including those producing in vitro diagnostic products.

I also applaud the recognition that the UK is a world leader in genomics, with this area identified as a key growth priority for the Government. However, while we welcome the flurry of Government plans published recently – including the Clinical Research Implementation Plan, the ‘Future Fund’ and the recent Sector Vision – there is a real need to ensure progress on these documents is coordinated to avoid siloed working and ensure a streamlined policy process.”

ENDS