Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng has today unveiled his new Growth Plan in Parliament – we will provide a full summary, and what it means for the life sciences industry, next week. Among the flagship tax cuts on income tax and the cancellation of corporation tax rises, the Chancellor also pledged to provide up to £500 million to support new innovative funds and attract billions of additional pounds into UK science and technology scale-ups.

The new Prime Minister has continued will her ministerial reshuffle following the country’s period of mourning. In a significant move, Lord Kamall has been moved from his position as Minister for Technology, Innovation and Life Sciences to the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

Nick Markham CBE has been elevated to the Lords specifically to become a Minister in the Department of Health and Social Care. Members may know him as the co-founder of Cignpost Diagnostics and ExpressTest. It is assumed he will take the ministerial vacancy left by Lord Kamall.

Dean Russell MP has joined BEIS as a Minister of State. He has a longstanding interest in health issues, having served on the Health and Social Care Committee from 2020-2022 and was Chair of the APPG for Digital Health. This experience will hopefully be beneficial when engaging with our industry.

In the same department, Lord Callanan retains his position as a Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, while in the Department of International Trade Marcus Fysh MP has been appointed a Minister of State.