The U.K. is establishing a new biosecurity center designed to improve research into potentially pandemic-causing pathogens and protect against emerging public health threats.
The U.K. government is investing billions into the sitedubbed the National Biosecurity Centreincluding 250 million pounds sterling (about $335 million) during this Parliament, according to a release shared July 17.
The new facility will be in Essex and is designed to be the largest of its kind in Europe, with 1,600 new jobs expected to support construction and the development of new treatments.
Current research and lab testing conducted across UK Health Security Agency sites in Wiltshire and London will take place at the new center once it is fully operational. Work on the site is expected to start as soon as possible, with the first facilities slated to open by mid-2030 and the whole center to open by 2038.
The Essex project is also strategically placed so that the site is closer to industry players at Oxford and Cambridge universities.
The National Biosecurity Centre will include state-of-the art labs for researching dangerous and new diseases, with hopes of boosting both the speed and scale of research into these conditions and potentially lifesaving vaccines.
Ultimately, the U.K.s mission is to protect the public while boosting healthcare and economic growth, according to the release.
COVID-19 taught us how crucial it is to be able to respond quickly to new emerging threats and the new National Biosecurity Centre will allow us to do exactly thatensuring Britain remains a world-leader in pandemic preparedness, Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said in the release.
The new center will be part of network of national biosecurity buildings and follows an announcement last month revealing a 1 billion pound ($1.3 billion) investment in a new campus for research into zoonotic diseases.
The U.K. recently laid out a plan to bolster its life sciences offerings with the goal of becoming a top global player in the industry by 2035. The new initiatives are meant to work in conjunction with the upcoming 10-year plan designed to rework national health services.
The government investment into the life sciences contrasts with recent federal financing sentiments for healthcare in the U.S. President Donald Trumps current administration has eliminated numerous research grants, axed certain health-related contracts, laid off thousands of federal healthcare staffers and revealed plans to slash budgets for agencies such as the National Cancer Institute and the National Institutes of Health.
In May, the U.S. administration announced plans to replace former President Joe Bidens Project NextGen, a $5 billion effort to accelerate next-gen COVID-19 countermeasures to address waning immunity and resistance.
The U.S. government is now putting down $500 million toward developing a universal vaccinea shot designed to protect against multiple strains of a pandemic-prone virus at once.
The type of vaccine the administration is pursuing, known as beta-propiolactone (BPL), has been around since the 1940s and is tied to more frequent mild side effects, prompting the industry to largely drop the approach years ago.
