OBN, EMIG call on the UK government to allocate additional funding to support BMC programme

OBN and EMIG - organisations with a combined membership of approximately 570 emerging R&D companies in biotechnology and medical technology, and established small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical firms, respectively - have called on the UK government to allocate additional funding to support the industrial component of Innovate UK's Biomedical Catalyst (BMC).

Jon Rees, OBN's CEO commented, "With EMIG, OBN has written to the Prime Minister, the Rt Hon David Cameron, to express our concern about the industrial component of Innovate UK's Biomedical Catalyst (BMC) programme. In our view it is one of the most successful interventions to stimulate innovation among emerging life sciences R&D companies since the introduction of R&D tax credits, but has been allocated just £30m in Innovate UK's Delivery Plan 2014/15, and with no further commitment to the programme beyond early 2015. This is a clear contradiction to the government's stated long-term support for UK life sciences."

The BMC programme is a key element in the government's ten-year Strategy for UK Life Sciences, launched in December 2011. Speaking at the time, Minister for Science David Willetts described the programme as helping to "bridge the 'valley of death' that exists between when a bright new idea is developed in the laboratory and the point when a new drug or technology can be invested in by the market".

Early responses, cited in the Strategy for UK Life Sciences: One Year On progress report, noted that BMC was already having the intended impact of stimulating innovative research. The first round of funding had "attracted significant new risk capital co-investments and much enthusiasm from the small and medium enterprise sector". OBN members - many doing the type of innovative R&D with high growth potential that government says it wishes to support - have received in more than £40m of BMC funding.

Leslie Galloway, EMIG's Chairman, comments, "We are calling for the government to make a firm and public commitment to continuing the BMC industrial component beyond Round 8 for the full ten-year period of the UK Life Science Strategy. We propose that the industrial component should be increased to £50m per annum to be allocated to both therapeutics and medical technology projects. Further, we are seeking a commitment to upfront payments for feasibility-stage projects. In response to reported difficulties in raising seed stage funding, we want the requirement for Feasibility Awards matched funding to be lifted."

The two organisations concluded, "If Government is serious about maintaining the UK as the best place in the world for life sciences innovation, a sustained, public sector programme is vital for directly de-risking technology development. The equity gap remains a reality. Withdrawing support for the programme will effectively demolish the bridge when only a handful of companies have managed to cross."