Biopharma Business

The UK has the strongest and most robust clinical pipeline in Europe, with the number of drug products in development higher in the UK than anywhere else in the region, according to a new report by the BioIndustry Association.

Building something great: UK’s Global Bioscience Cluster 2016, argues that the UK is in a strong position to close the gap on the leading life sciences clusters in Boston and San Francisco and keep its pole position in Europe, but only if the current momentum is maintained.

The report found that UK biotech’s raised a total of £1.13 billion from private and public sources last year, £681 million of which came from venture capital funding, equating to more than a third of the total venture capital raised in Europe and more than any other European country.

The rest stemmed from IPO activity (seven, amounting to £105 million) and other public financing (£344 million).

“The UK continues to be the strongest performer in Europe and it continues to build towards becoming the third global biotech cluster,” noted Steve Bates, chief executive of the BIA.

“This is down to the excellent science produced by our entrepreneurial and resilient community that is staffed by great management teams with the capability to tackle the challenges of working in a global environment.”

However, the sector continues to face significant challenges ahead, particularly with the uncertainties surrounding the UK’s departure from the EU and the general downward trend in global market activity.

Written by Selina McKee