Lord Sainsbury of Turville

Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund (JDRF) Dinner

The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation is one of the world’s most successful research charities. Not only does it work hard to raise awareness of juvenile diabetes, as this week’s events in Washington DC show only too well, but it also strives to find a cure for the disease through its substantial support for research into diabetes. The JDRF spends over $100 million per year on diabetes research. I am proud to say that Britain is the largest overseas recipient of JDRF research funding, where it works in partnership with the Wellcome Trust to find British scientists.

Professor John Todd, at Cambridge University, is Britain’s leading diabetes researcher. His work is recognised around the world and I am very happy to see that he has been able to join us tonight, along with Ted Bianco from the Wellcome Trust. With the continued support of both the JDRF and the Wellcome Trust I am sure that Professor Todd will achieve great things.

The British government is a great supporter of medical research and recognises the potential that science holds for the future. It works hard to create a climate in which science can thrive and produce real benefits for society. Its continued support for medical research is reflected in the recent increases in the science budget, which will be approaching $5 billion by 2005 (double the amount spent five years ago) and by its efforts to build bridges between academia and industry. Not only does the UK have an excellent track record in basic scientific research, as shown by the number of science citations received (with 1% of the world’s population we fund 4.5% of the world’s science, produce 8% of the world’s scientific papers and receive 9% of the citations of scientific papers), but we are increasingly able to turn that research into real solutions and products.

Our pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors are the largest in Europe. 15 of the world’s top 75 medicines were discovered and developed in Britain. I am proud to lead the largest international delegation in BIO2003, the world’s biggest international biotechnology conference taking place in Washington this weekend. British biotechnology companies are often at the cutting edge of research. Dr Stephen Minger, for example, from Cerestem is with us tonight. His company, bases at King’s College London, is focused on using stem cell research to find solutions for diseases like diabetes.

But we couldn’t do this alone. From the discovery of the structure of the DNA double helix fifty years ago, to today’s scientific collaborations, British and American scientists have worked closely together. With us tonight are a number of leading scientists from both Britain and America who are continuing that fine tradition. Professor Roger Pedersen has recently moved to the United Kingdom to take forward this world-leading research on stem cells and tissue engineering. Professor Pedersen is here to represent the Medical Research Council, Britain’s primary funding agency for medical research.

Also here are Professor Leslie Iversen from King’s College London and John Hardy from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), who will be sharing a platform tomorrow at the UK-led seminar on neurodegeneration at BIO2003. And I must also mention Professor James Battey, Director of the National Institute for Communication Disorders at the NIH, the man responsible for overseeing the tricky area of human stem cell research. Professor Battey works closely with the British Medical Council and other agencies around the world to find a way in which we make sure we are able to exploit stem cells to their full benefit but in a way that is socially and ethically acceptable.

And finally I must mention Dr Mike Leonardo, who joins us today from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Mike has been the driving force behind the creation of a new partnership between Britain and America, the establishment of a graduate student exchange programme with Oxford and Cambridge Universities, funded by the NIH. The programme started with just two students in 2001 and after its initial success now funds around 12-15 students per year. The programme is unique in that the students themselves identify opportunities for joint biomedical research in the UK and the NIH, and then act as the bridge to link those research laboratories together. Mike is keen to ensure that the programme continues to be a success and to explore ways in which it can be expanded to other Universities.

And, of course, we have the partnership between the JDRF and the Wellcome Trust, which looks set to continue the fine tradition of research collaboration between Britain and America. With organisations like these and the huge amount of effort being devoted to medical research on both sides of the Atlantic and around the world, together I am sure that we will find a cure for diabetes. I wish the JDRF and their partners every success in this and look forward to hearing of great things in the future.