Protecting the UK population from another pandemic is not just a matter of national security – it is also inextricably linked to significant economic potential. As technology progresses in the age of AI and engineering biology, and the range of biological threats becomes more complex (with rises in animal-to-human disease transmission, and antimicrobial resistance), the UK has a narrowing window of opportunity to capitalise on progress whilst simultaneously strengthening resilience.
The UK has published clear visions for engineering biology, biosecurity, and economic growth. However, despite the UK’s strong international standing in life science research and the generation of commercial startups, the UK still suffers from a lack of success in commercial scale-up and a lack of sovereign, large companies. This prevents the UK from being a world leader in the bioeconomy, but we believe this can change.
This report is informed by interviews with leading experts on biosecurity and the bioeconomy from the UK Government, academia, and industry. In it, we propose 6 recommendations that will help grow the UK bioeconomy and build national resilience against future biological events:
- Centralise the Government’s external biosecurity funding opportunities into a single hub that industry and academia can readily access.
- Improve public-private sector partnerships and increase the use of existing, efficient contracting frameworks.
- Inform and incentivise the NHS and UK industry leaders to support UK life sciences startups, procure strategically and grow larger companies.
- Convene a UK cross-sector event and identify priority domains of engineering biology for increased UK state investment.
- Double down on the UK’s strengths in genomics and other ‘omics’ to secure a world-leading economy.
- Create a UK biotechnology action plan with a strategic focus on the adoption of AI in biotechnology to meet national strategic aims.
A bioeconomy with biosecurity hardwired into it is geared toward resilience to strategic shocks and is postured for long-term stability. These recommendations are not exhaustive; they complement other report recommendations on the bioeconomy and aim to help the UK Government achieve its prosperity and national security goals.
To read the full report, click on the ‘Download’ button below
