A boost in UK medicines manufacturing could attract £15bn in investments according to new report

A new report from the medicines manufacturing alliance has found that if the UK is to realise its 'life sciences superpower’ ambition, it must not only discover and develop new medicines, but must also manufacture a significant share of them too.

The report from the Medicines Manufacturing Industry Partnership (MMIP), entitled Follow the green, high-tech road: A path to UK growth, net zero and health resilience from innovation in medicines manufacturing, reveals how, with the right policies in place, the UK could attract £15bn in company investment over ten years and create more than 116,000 new jobs.

Medicines manufacturing is the largest economic contributor within the UK life sciences sector, according to MMIP, providing almost 45% of the £36.9bn delivered by the life sciences industry in 2019, compared to 13% from research. However, the UK’s position as a manufacturing leader has declined in recent years, the alliance said, and a formerly strong trade balance has become a deficit.

Brian Henry, chair of MMIP said: “The UK’s life sciences sector has tremendous potential to drive significant growth. But it is not enough to discover the medicines and vaccines of the future here, if companies then make them at scale elsewhere.

“We believe the UK can lead the world in innovative advanced manufacture of new therapies, drive more sustainable medicines manufacture and address gaps in our supply chain footprint."

The MMIP report sets out nine key recommendations to reverse this decline and make the UK the ‘best global location’ for innovative and environmentally sustainable medicines manufacturing.

This includes a call for £1.1bn from the government over four years to provide ‘sustained, predictable and accessible’ innovation funding and investment incentives, as well as a five-year digital innovation in medicines manufacturing technology roadmap.

The alliance also recommends implementing a three-point plan to deliver global leadership in environmentally sustainable medicines, including developing an internationally recognised standard for medicines manufacturing greenhouse gas emissions and establishing the infrastructure to enable net zero medicines manufacture.

Henry said: “Our recommendations will help create the right, pro-investment ecosystem for companies to choose the UK when deciding where to place their next manufacturing facility.

“A sustained effort is needed to capitalise on the UK’s traditional strength in early-stage science and translate it into medicines manufacturing success – with all the jobs, investment and long-term growth that comes with it.”