A guide to the Government for BIA members

Correct as of 26 June 2020

This is a briefing for BIA members on the Government led by and key ministerial appointments for our sector after the December 2019 General Election and February 2020 Cabinet reshuffle.

Following the Conservative Party’s compelling victory, the Government now holds a majority of 80 seats in the House of Commons. The life sciences sector is high on the Government’s agenda and Boris Johnson has pledged to make the UK “the leading global hub for life sciences after ”. With its strong majority, the Government has the power to enact the policies supportive of the sector in the Conservatives 2019 Manifesto. All in all, this indicates a positive outlook for life sciences during this Government’s tenure.

Contents: Ministerial and policy maker positions in the new Government relevant to the life sciences sector ...... 2 Ministers and policy maker profiles...... 7

Ministerial and policy maker positions in the new Government relevant to the life sciences sector*

*Please note that this guide only covers ministers and responsibilities relevant to the life sciences and will be updated as further roles and responsibilities are announced.

Department Position Holder Relevant responsibility Holder in previous government Number 10 Prime Minister Boris Johnson MP Boris Johnson MP Special Adviser to the Prime Adviser to the Prime Minister on Dominic Cummings Minister overall strategy, particularly Brexit strategy and science policy PPS to the Prime Minister MP and Trudy Alex Burghart MP Harrison MP Director of No10 Policy Unit Adviser to the Prime Minister on Munira Mirza overall Government policy Special Adviser to the Prime Will Warr Health policy Will Warr Minister: Health and Social Care Chief Strategic Adviser Sir Edward Lister Senior aide to the Prime Minister Sir Edward Lister (Political) Chancellor of the Duchy of MP Advising the Prime Minister on Michael Gove MP Lancaster developing and implementing Government policy; committees and implementation taskforces (including no-deal preparation;

overseeing devolution

consequences of EU exit) PPS to the Chancellor of the MP Kevin Hollinrake MP Duchy of Lancaster

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HM Treasury Chancellor of the Exchequer MP MP

Joint Economic Unit Liam Booth-Smith, Co-ordinating economic policy between No10 and HMT Douglas McNeill, between Number 10 and the (established after the Feb Nerissa Chesterfield, Treasury; budget policy; media and 2020 reshuffle) comms

PPS to the Chancellor MP MP Chief Secretary to the MP Public expenditure including capital Rishi Sunak MP Treasury investment; tax credits Financial Secretary MP Strategic oversight of the UK tax Jesse Norman MP system including direct, indirect, business, property and personal taxation; corporate and small business taxation; European and international tax issues Exchequer Secretary to the MP UK growth and productivity; Simon Clarke MP Treasury including Industrial Strategy; and Midlands Engine; promoting UK as a destination for foreign direct investment (non-financial services) and the Patient Capital Review Economic Secretary to the MP Financial conduct, including John Glen MP Treasury and relationship with the FCA; EU exit financial services; Bank lending and access to finance

Business, Energy and Secretary of State for MP MP Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

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Special Advisor to the Natasha Adkins Policy and media Marc Pooler Business Secretary Special Advisor to the Alex Hitchcock Policy and media Samantha Magnus Business Secretary PPS to the Business Jo Gideon MP MP Secretary Parliamentary Under MP Industrial Strategy delivery; Sector Nadhim Zahawi MP Secretary of State (Minister Deals; sector lead for life sciences; for Business and Industry) supply chains; regulation and regulatory reform Parliamentary Under MP Science; research; innovation; MP (was Secretary of State intellectual property (Science and ) Universities brief now split between BEIS and DfE) Parliamentary Under Lord Callanan Lords lead on all BEIS issues; Lord Duncan of Secretary of State corporate governance; better Springbank regulation and regulatory reform; climate change Department of Health and Secretary of State for MP Matt Hancock MP Social Care Health and Social Care Special Adviser to the Emma Dean Advising the Health Secretary across Richard Sloggett Health Secretary his brief Special Adviser to the Jamie Njoku-Goodwin Media Jamie Njoku-Goodwin Health Secretary Special Adviser to the Allan Nixon Parliamentary liaison Allan Nixon Health Secretary PPS to the Health Secretary Virginia Crosbie MP MP PPS to the Ministerial Team Steve Double MP James Cartlidge MP

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Minister of State for Care MP Research and life sciences; social MP care; hospital care quality and patient safety; Minister of State for Health MP EU future relationship and trade; Edward Argar MP NHS operational performance Parliamentary Under MP Public health system; health Jo Churchill MP Secretary of State for improvement; public health Prevention, Public Health delivery; primary care; major and Primary Care diseases Minister of State for Mental MP Mental health; patient safety and Nadine Dorries MP Health, Suicide Prevention quality; NHS litigation; sponsorship and Patient Safety of CQC and NHS Resolution Parliamentary Under- Lord Bethell of Romford Life sciences; medicines; research; Baroness Blackwood Secretary of State for rare diseases; anti-microbial Health resistance; global health security Department for Secretary of State for MP Liz Truss MP International Trade International Trade Special Advisor to the Trade Adam Jones, Policy and Comms Kane Daniell Secretary Sophie Jarvis PPS to the Trade Secretary David Duguid MP MP PPS to the Ministerial Team Bim Afolami MP Mike Wood MP Minister of State for Trade MP Export controls; FTAs with USA, MP Policy Australia, New Zealand, Japan; reform of WTO; UK tariff policy

Minister for Investment Lord Grimstone of Boscobel Investment strategy; promoting Graham Stuart MP Kt investment across all sectors; promoting FDI and portfolio investment in the UK

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Department for Education Secretary of State for CBE MP MP Education Special Advisor to the Innes Taylor, Angus Walker Policy and Comms Katherine Howell Education Secretary Minister of State for MP Academic research and education Chris Skidmore MP (held Universities (‘Science and Universities’ brief now ‘Science and Universities’ split between BEIS and DfE) brief across BEIS and DfE) Parliamentary Under Gillian Keegan MP Apprenticeships and skills (held brief as Secretary of State Minister)

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Key ministers and policymaker profiles

Boris Johnson MP - Prime Minister

Boris Johnson led the Conservative party to a major victory in the 2019 General Election. His manifesto has pledged to make the UK a leading global hub for life sciences, which he calls an industry of the future. He also promises to “unlock long-term capital in pension funds to invest in and commercialise our scientific discoveries” and expand R&D tax credits to include data, something the BIA has long advocated for. The BIA published analysis of each major party’s manifesto before the 2019 General Election.

His first speech as PM in July 2019 praised the UK’s “extraordinary bioscience sector” and highlighted the life sciences and academia as strengths of the economy. He mentioned a new gene therapy to treat the most common form of blindness, which, though he didn’t name them, has been developed by Gyroscope and Orbit Biomedical, both BIA members. The speech gave several reasons to be hopeful for beneficial policies for the life sciences sector, and suggests a strong influence from individuals like George Freeman MP, Sir John Bell and Will Warr (see below).

Johnson spoke at the BIA UK Bioscience Forum in 2013 when Mayor of and, in 2014, launched MedCity, which aimed to support London and the south east becoming the world’s life sciences capital. As an MP he has not made the sector a key focus of his work but has written about gene therapies in his Telegraph column and has backed greater NHS spending. BIA members GSK and MSD are based in his Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency.

Dominic Cummings - Special Adviser to the Prime Minister

Dominic Cummings is Boris Johnson’s most senior and is highly influential in shaping the Government’s policies. He is thought to have been instrumental in the February 2020 reshuffle and in establishing a possible joint special adviser unit between No 10 and the Treasury, which many believe will leave the budget in the hands of No 10 (see more below). Currently most high-level Government decisions go through Dominic Cummings.

The positive approach to the life sciences sector in the Conservative manifesto indicates that Cummings recognises the importance of the sector. Cummings favours science and innovation and advocates for more data scientists and AI experts within the special advisers workforce and civil service. He also wants to establish a UK equivalent to the US Advanced Research

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Projects Agency (ARPA), which has been a leading and well-respected part of the American innovation ecosystem since the 1950s, but it is currently unclear how developed the plans for a UK ARPA are.

Cummings officially became senior adviser to Johnson when he took office in July 2019 and was influential in the Conservative Party’s strategy and campaign leading to the compelling General Election victory in December 2019. Previously, he was director of the campaign and is to a large extent credited with its success.

From 1999 to 2002, he was campaign director at Business for Sterling, the campaign against the UK joining the . He has held various strategic and special adviser roles within the Conservative Party, such as for Michael Gove from 2007 to 2014.

William Warr – Special Adviser to the Prime Minister for Health, Social Care, Life Sciences, Technology & AI

Together with Sir John Bell, William wrote the UK's Life Science Industrial Strategy. He has been involved in implementing initiatives launched through the strategy since then and also working for Lynton Crosby’s political consultancy, which has been running Boris Johnson’s campaigns for many years. He also briefly worked in ’s Policy Implementation Unit in 2015.

His appointment to advise the Prime Minister suggests Johnson believes in the industrial strategy approach of the previous administration and bodes well for the life sciences sector. William is close to the BIA – Steve Bates was on John Bell’s advisory board for the strategy and William attended a BIA roundtable late last year.

William was awarded a PhD in 2019 for his work at the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences at the . He studied policy at Cambridge University and politics at Durham. He is also a keen rower and was the first person in 188 years to row for both Oxford and Cambridge boat race teams.

Rishi Sunak MP - Chancellor of the Exchequer

Rishi Sunak was promoted to Chancellor from his role as Chief Secretary to the Treasury immediately after Sajid Javid’s surprise resignation during the February 2020 Cabinet reshuffle. Having only been MP since 2014 and on the frontbench since 2018, he has progressed quickly and is relatively unknown. His appoinment has been reported as a ‘power grab’ by No 10 and there is speculation that Johnson and Cummings largely dictate the policies of the Treasury. They have established A Joint Economic Unit of special advisers between No 10 and the Treasury, covering areas such as budget policy, in which the staff reports to Johnson and Cummings.

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The March 2020 Budget included important announcements for the life sciences sector, including increased R&D investment amounting to £22bn, £4bn more than expected, a new £200m scale-up fund, and positive news on the R&D tax credit PAYE cap. For full analysis of what the Budget means for the life sciences sector, please see BIA’s Budget 2020 analysis. The months following the Budget have been overshadowed by the COVID-19 pandemic under which the Treasury have announced and implemented enormous support packages for affected sectors and workers. It remains to be seen how COVID-19 will affect the Budget delivery, but the Government has announced that spending on e.g. infrastructure will be sped up to form part of the recovery, indicating that Budget policies of increased Government investment are considered crucial to post-COVID-19 recovery. Before being Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Sunak was Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Ministry of Housing from 2018 to 2019 and Parliamentary Private Secretary at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy from 2017 to 2018. His constituency of Richmond (Yorks) has no life sciences industry. The Chancellor is loyal to Boris Johnson and was one of the 188 Tory rebels who voted against May’s government to oppose extending Article 50 in March 2019. Sunak comes from a busines background, having co-founded an investment firm and worked as an analyst for as well as various hedge funds. He holds a BA in philosophy, politics and economics from Oxford University and an MBA from . Sunak is married to the daughter of Indian billionaire and co-founder of Infosys, N. R. Narayana Murthy. Alok Sharma MP - Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Alok Sharma was appointed to Secretary of State for BEIS during the February 2020 Cabinet reshuffle. In 2019, Boris Johnson promoted him to his Cabinet as Secretary of State for International Development. His positions on Industrial Strategy and the life sciences sector are largely unknown.

Sharma has been MP for Reading West, a constituency with very few life sciences companies, since 2010. He has held various frontbench roles in May’s government, such as Minister of State in the Department for Communities and in the Department for Work and Pensions.

He has a degree in applied physics with electronics from the and qualified as a chartered accountant with Coopers & Lybrand Deloitte. Most of his career has been within accountancy and banking in London, Stockholm and .

In 2016, Sharma campaigned for the UK to remain in the EU and stated that, while the EU is not perfect, overall it is better for economy, jobs and national security.

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Originally from , Sharma and his family moved to Reading when he was 5 years old. He is the son of veterinary surgeon and activist Dr Prem Sharma OBE. Sharma has been outspoken about his support for British companies investing in emerging economies such as India.

Matt Hancock MP – Secretary of State for Health and Social Care

Matt Hancock has been Health Secretary since July 2018, having been appointed by . He was one of the few Ministers to survive in post following Boris Johnson taking office.

As Health Secretary, Hancock has been an enthusiastic backer of innovation in healthcare, particularly in digital and genomics, and was in post when the Life Sciences Sector Deal 2 was published. He has also overseen the Voluntary Scheme on branded medicines negotiation and stated that the deal is “good for patients, good for the NHS and good for the UK life sciences industry. Cutting-edge and best value medicines will be fast-tracked, and we will cut our medicines bill by £930 million next year following tough but constructive negotiations with the pharmaceutical industry.” Importantly, under his charge, the Health Department objected to an international agreement to reduce drug prices as part of a resolution at the World Health Organisation, maintaining IP protections and commercial confidentiality.

Hancock has been intimately involved in no-deal planning for medicines supply but has not offered strong reassurances on the UK’s future relationship with the European Medicines Agency. He co-chairs the Life Sciences Council, on which the BIA has two seats, and he spoke at the recent Future of Healthcare Investor Forum at the London Stock Exchange, which the BIA helped to organise. BIA member Genzyme is in his constituency of West Suffolk.

He stood as leader of Conservative Party in the recent race but withdrew on 14 June and later backed Boris Johnson. Prior to becoming Health Secretary, he was Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport from January 2018 to July 2018 and held a number of junior ministerial positions.

Amanda Solloway MP - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Science, Research and Innovation

Amanda Solloway was promoted to Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Science, Research and Innovation in the February 2020 reshuffle. She first became an MP in 2015 when she won Derby North from Labour by 41 votes. In the 2017 General Election, she narrowly lost the seat, before regaining it again in 2019 with an increased majority.

Following her promotion in February 2020, Solloway said that the “ has long been a leader in the field of life sciences and technology, discovering penicillin and inventing the telephone and the World Wide Web”. She also said that “Being chosen to help steer the United Kingdom, and keep us at the top of our game, is both a privilege and a great responsibility. I am looking forward to it.” BIA member briefing Page 10

Outside of politics, Solloway has held variety of roles in the management, retail and not-for-profit sectors. After she lost her seat in 2017, she worked as a consultant.

Ministers for the life sciences

The responsibilities for the life sciences continue to be split between health and business department ministers. This is centrally coordinated by the Office for Life Sciences.

Lord Bethell of Romford, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Department of Health and Social Care

James Bethell was appointed as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Health and Social Care in March 2020 after Baroness Blackwood resigned at the reshuffle in February.

He is a hereditary peer and joined as a Conservative member of the in 2018, where he has been serving as Lord in Waiting (a government whip) since 2019. In the 2005 General Election, Bethell contested the constituency of Tooting where he lost to .

Bethell has no known experience with the life sciences sector and little is known about his position on it. During a February 2020 Lords reading of the NHS Funding Bill, he expressed strong support for increased NHS funding and called it, “our most vital and valued public service.” He also said that extra funding “will allow the NHS to invest in innovative technology such as genomics and artificial intelligence, to create more precise, more personalised and more effective treatments.”

Prior to his political career, Lord Bethell has worked as a reporter for and been Managing Director for Ministry of Sound from 1993 to 2001. He has also worked at Westbourne Communications for almost ten years and for four months.

Nadhim Zahawi MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Nadhim Zahawi MP was appointed as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy in July 2019, taking over the responsibilities for life sciences and sector deals.

In his current role he has met with the BIA’s CEO Steve Bates multiple times and delivered the keynote speech at the BIA’s Gala Dinner in January 2020.

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He was previously Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the from January 2018 until July 2019. Zahawi was elected as MP for Stratford-upon-Avon in 2010. He sat on the Business, Innovation and Skills Committee from 2010 to 2015 and was intermittently on the Foreign Affairs Committee from 2014 until 2018.

Before entering Parliament, Zahawi was Chief Executive of the polling company YouGov between 2005 and 2010, and was one of its founder executives. In addition to his parliamentary and ministerial roles, Zahawi is Chief Strategy Officer of Gulf Keystone Petroleum. He also previously held marketing rolls, including for Smith & Brooks.

Zahawi has long association with Conservative politics, having been a Councillor in Wandsworth from 1994 to 2006. He stood as the Conservative candidate for Erith and Thamesmead in 1997, losing to Labour. He also worked with former Conservative politician, Lord Archer – during his campaign to become in 1998. He also worked with Lord Archer during the ‘Simple Truth’ campaign in 1991 to raise funds for Kurdish victims of the first Gulf War.

Zahawi was born in Baghdad, Iraq and moved with his parents at the age of nine to the UK in 1976 to escape Saddam Hussein’s rule. He has a degree in Chemical Engineering from University London.

For additional information please contact Eric Johnsson, Policy and Public Affairs Manager, at [email protected] or 0207 630 2197.

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