Chairman appointed to Precision Medicine Catapult

Richard Barker is currently founding Director of the Centre for the Advancement of Sustainable Medical Innovation (CASMI) based jointly at Oxford University and UCL. He is also chairman of the South London Academic Health Science Network and the corresponding Genomic Medicine Centre. His past roles include seven years as Director General of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, the leadership of a major international diagnostics company and healthcare general manager at IBM.

The Precision Medicine Catapult will simplify and accelerate precision medicine product development and implementation, building the necessary partnerships between different therapeutic, diagnostic and informatics players in the sector, supporting existing and new companies, and attracting inward investment by global life science companies. Precision medicine uses diagnostic tests and analysis of clinical data to select the most appropriate treatment for individual patients. It is already worth £14 billion in annual sales of new therapies and diagnostic tests worldwide, and is forecast to reach £50-60 billion by 2020.

The Catapult is already generating significant interest from leading universities and hospitals across the UK. A team from Innovate UK is currently visiting a number of locations across the UK to begin to build partnerships with each and to select a home for the Catapult. Richard will play a key role in these decisions.

It is one of two new Catapults set to open from April 2015, alongside the Energy Systems Catapult. There are currently seven Catapults up and running – High Value Manufacturing, Cell Therapy, Satellite Applications, Future Cities, Digital, Offshore Renewable Energy and Transport Systems.

Universities, Science and Cities Minister Greg Clark said:

“The Precision Medicine Catapult is a testament to the UK’s strength in the life sciences sector and our commitment to ensuring the UK takes the lead in this emerging area.

“Richard Barker’s expertise and experience make him an ideal candidate to drive forward this important addition to our catapult network.”

Welcoming the appointment Simon Edmonds, Catapult Programme Director at Innovate UK, said:

“Richard Barker’s long-standing experience and expertise in healthcare innovation in international business, academia and policy making will be invaluable to the development of the Precision Medicine Catapult.”

Richard Barker said:

“I’m delighted to be given the opportunity to build a high-talent team to drive forward the UK’s position in precision medicine – taking full advantage of a wide range of investments already made. I’m determined that the UK be among the leaders in forging what is, in many ways, the future of medicine.”