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£500m science centre unveiled

05/12/2007

A new £500 million medical and scientific research centre has been given the green light by the government.

It is hoped that the UK Centre for Medical Research and Innovation (UMCRMI) will attract world class scientists in a bid to combat the world's diseases.

The centre is to be built in land between the British Library and the Eurostar terminal at St Pancras in London and is expected to open in 2013.

Prime minister Gordon Brown says the government "strongly supports" plans to create Europe's leading centre for medical research.

"It will maintain Britain's position at the forefront of global medical research, strengthen the economy and, through its links with the NHS, has huge potential to change patients' lives," Mr Brown said.

"By taking groundbreaking scientific discoveries right through to treatment, I expect that the 1,500 staff who will be part of this project will develop many of the cures, vaccines and drugs from which the NHS and its patients will benefit in years to come."

The project is being led by the government-funded Medical Research Council, Cancer Research UK, the Wellcome Trust, and University College London.

Nobel laureate Sir Paul Nurse, president of Rockefeller University, New York, will direct the project's scientific planning.

It is hoped that Sir Paul's team will strengthen collaboration between the NHS and the scientific research community.

"This is a visionary decision made by the government and the four funders, which will create a powerhouse of biomedical research comparable to the very best in the world," he explained.

"It will provide outstanding new opportunities for interdisciplinary research and training for scientists, supporting biomedicine and health care throughout the UK.

"It is one of the most exciting ventures for UK science in a generation, and I am delighted to be leading the scientific planning process."