Britain’s future prosperity, we are frequently told, lies in scientific discovery,
so it’s odd that David Cameron has not given a major speech on it as prime minister until now. He will talk later today about the need to deregulate pharmaceutical licensing to
encourage private investment in public health. He views the life sciences sector as a vital source of future economic growth.
The PM will announce four new initiatives. First, seriously ill patients will be granted access to new drug treatments before they have cleared clinical trials — this measure will accelerate the introduction of innovative new treatments, encouraging drug companies to boost their research and development spending in the hope of making substantial profits in a shorter period of time than is currently possible. The government will also provide £180m as a “catalyst fund” to boost private R&D investment, and a smaller sum (perhaps only £10m) will be spent in partnership with AstraZeneca to reopen closed experiments into treating diseases such as cancer and diabetes.
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