With revenues worth £3.3bn per annum, the biosciences play a vital role in maintaining the UK’s international competitiveness. John Denham - Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills - launched the ten-year skills action plan at the House of Lords.

Speaking at the launch, John Denham said: “This sector-wide commitment to skills will do much to enhance the UK's position as a leading centre for research and development. I am particularly pleased that the plan emphasises partnership between employers and education and training providers. This will be instrumental both in promoting the sector to young people and in equipping graduates with high-level skills they need to contribute to the success of our bioscience industries”.

The agreement was been brokered by Semta, the Sector Skills Council for Science, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies. According to research by Semta, over a quarter of bioscience companies do not have the science skills they need in their existing workforce. 39% of bioscience/pharmaceutical companies have hard to fill vacancies, with 22% having skills shortages in the science arena, five times the figure for other sectors. The Sector Skills Agreement will help enable the sector to address this deficit.

Sir Alan Jones, Chair of Semta, said: “Collectively tackling skills priorities will bring about the step-change needed to safeguard a great future for the UK bioscience industry. Commitment to implementing the Sector Skills Agreement is crucial. We look forward to working with partners across the UK: the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills, the new Commission for Employment and Skills, universities, the Welsh Assembly Government, the Scottish Executive, Cogent, and the QCA to deliver a demand-led system that meets the needs of employers.”

To join other bioscience companies who will be putting the agreement’s plan into action, please call Darren Race on 01740 627000 or e-mail drace@semta.org.uk.