The life sciences sector in the North of England has grown by 48% and over £4billion in the last year, according to new figures.
The North of England has a tremendous opportunity to make the most of its excellent universities, hospitals and booming life sciences industry to meet the challenges of an ageing population and to harness the power of AI for the benefit of the UK as a whole
Analysis of figures from the Office of Life Sciences’ Strength and Opportunity 2017: the landscape of the medical technology and biopharmaceutical sectors in the UK report, provided by BioNow, has demonstrated that the value of the North’s life sciences economy has grown from £9.2billion in 2016 to £13.6billion in 2017 – a rise of 48% over the last year. This growth rate is 4.8% higher than the national average.
The data also shows that the region is home to 21% of the total UK Life Science sector workforce, 19% of the UK biopharmaceutical sector workforce, 22% of the UK medical technology sector workforce, and a very-significant 29% of the UK digital health workforce.
And the number of companies has grown by 755 in the past year.
Dr Hakim Yadi, chief executive of the Northern Health Science Alliance revealed the figures on the third day of Northern Powerhouse Business Summit, Great Futures, which tool place in Newcastle as a part of the Great Exhibition of the North.
He said: “The North’s life sciences economy is booming, as shown by the incredible growth that’s taken place over the past two years.
“The North of England has a tremendous opportunity to make the most of its excellent universities, hospitals and booming life sciences industry to meet the challenges of an ageing population and to harness the power of AI for the benefit of the UK as a whole.
“The region has national centres in ageing, digital health, antimicrobial resistance, cancer research, and health data. It is again pioneering treatments in and using these capabilities supported by business confidence of £1.6billion of planned investments.
The creativity and tenacity that has characterised the North of the past continues to this day and will continue to do so well into the future
“The creativity and tenacity that has characterised the North of the past continues to this day and will continue to do so well into the future.”
Minister of State at the Department for International Trade (DIT), Baroness Fairhead, added: “The UK is a world leader in the life sciences sector, with our businesses, including from the region covered by Northern Health Science Alliance, at the forefront of innovation in healthcare, medical technology and biosciences.
“The DIT will continue to support British businesses in the life sciences sector to sell to overseas markets through our wide-ranging support offer.”