AstraZeneca commits £200m and 1,000 jobs to Cambridge in £650m UK investment boom

It is also investing £450m to research, develop and manufacture vaccines in a Speke, Liverpool facility which will be operationally net zero with power supplied from renewable energy sources.

The Government said the £650m investment package would enhance public health protection and pandemic preparedness.

The Speke investment builds on the site’s current role in supplying the world leading childhood vaccination programme.

In a further boost for the UK’s resilience for future pandemics and global health threats, AstraZeneca and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) plan to work in partnership to advance science for developing and evaluating vaccines – using technology from both AstraZeneca’s manufacturing site in Speke and the UKHSA’s Vaccine Development Evaluation Centre (VDEC) at its Porton Down site.

AstraZeneca will also expand its presence at Europe’s largest life sciences cluster in Cambridge with the £200m investment. A second major facility will house around 1,000 employees and will be adjacent to the company’s £1.1 billion global R & D Discovery Centre (DISC), which already hosts 2,300 researchers and scientists.

These jobs will provide opportunities for people looking to get the skills they need to succeed in life and – with cuts to National Insurance – enjoy more money in their pocket as a result of their hard work.

The company will also open a new manufacturing facility for one of its cancer medicines in Macclesfield later this year, following the announcement of a £380 million investment in 2021.

AstraZeneca Chief Executive Officer, Sir Pascal Soriot, said: “AstraZeneca’s planned investment would enhance the UK’s pandemic preparedness and demonstrates our ongoing confidence in UK life sciences. We will continue to support the UK in driving innovation and patient access, building on the strong foundations which have been put in place.

“This year marks 25 years since the merger of UK-based Zeneca Group and Swedish Astra AB. We are proud of our British roots and how far we have come over that time – we are now a truly global company that has transformed the lives of millions of patients throughout the world with a relentless focus on science and innovation.”