Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the outcomes to NHS England arising from his Department's £3.5 billion investment in the life sciences industry, announced on 20 November 2014.

The success of the life sciences industry is a key part of the Government’s wider growth strategy. The Government has made significant investments to support the success of the sector including around £1 billion a year in science and research council funding, over £500 million annually from the National Institute for Health Research for world-class research infrastructure in the National Health Service and through the work Genomics England is doing to deliver the 100,000 Genomes Project.

As announced on 20 November 2014, the United Kingdom life sciences have attracted £3.5 billion of private sector investment since my Rt. hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, launched the strategy for UK life sciences in December 2011.

That investment benefits the UK in a number of ways. It benefits the economy more widely and, critically, it benefits the NHS and patients through the development of innovative drugs and novel technologies and through faster access to cutting-edge treatments through clinical trials.

We have made no assessment of the impact on NHS England of this private sector investment.