News
BioCampus will be Liverpool's MediaCity – Anderson
Source: North West Business Insider
Flagship developments like the city's BioCampus will be as vital to Liverpool as MediaCity is to Salford, Mayor Joe Anderson told an audience of business leaders this morning (26 October 2012).
He said ongoing developments in the city's knowledge quarter would position Liverpool as a major international centre for life sciences that could rival Boston and Singapore.
"The BioCampus is our investment in our ambition," Anderson said.
"Two million sq ft encompassing one of Europe’s biggest cluster of bio-businesses, research facilities and a state of the art new teaching hospital.
"This is a development that is as vital to Liverpool’s knowledge economy as MediaCity is to Salford’s. In national and global terms it is undoubtedly more important, with the potential to establish Liverpool as a major international centre for life sciences that can in time rival Boston and Singapore."
Plans for a £28m BioInnovation Centre – the first part of the BioCampus ambition – were approved earlier this year. The scheme, which will have 35 laboratories over five floors, is expected to help to create 5,000 jobs.
Speaking at a breakfast summit, part of the Liverpool Knowledge Festival, Anderson added his Mayoral Development Zone, covering the knowledge quarter, would be vital in supporting the growth of the area. He also pledged to support businesses interested in becoming part of the BioCampus - but stressed that all sectors had to play their part.
"It’s about smart governance, not just from me and my colleagues in the public sector, but from you in the academic and private sectors," he said. "Robust partnership with a common goal is what will make this work."
Anderson added: "Complementing this cluster of innovation and invention is another element of our knowledge offer - our strong and vibrant digital and creative sector in the Ropewalks and Baltic areas of the city.
"We have real strengths in areas such as games development, music and digital media from the likes of Sound City, Lucid Games, Uniform and Milky Tea."
Max Steinberg, chief executive of Liverpool Vision, chaired the breakfast event, while panellists included Dr Penny Attridge from SPARK Impact and Dr Neil Murray from Redx Pharma.
Redx Pharma last week secured a conditional offer of £4.7m from the government's Regional Growth Fund to help fund an initial two-year pre-clinical phase of a five year research and development project.
The research will create 119 skilled jobs directly at the company within chemistry, biochemistry and analytical testing and a further 28 specialist jobs within the wider supply chain over its lifetime.
‹
Back
