BIA brings life sciences to the heart of Westminster for Parliament Day 2026

BIA members gathered in London on Tuesday, for our 26^th annual Parliament Day

The UK life sciences sector stands at a critical crossroads. In an era defined by global macroeconomic shifts and rising geopolitical tensions, capital is looking for stability.

The UK consistently attracts over 40% of European biotech venture capital, employs more than 360,000 people, and generates an annual turnover exceeding £146 billion. The foundational strength is undeniable.

But as BIA members gathered in London on Tuesday, for our 26^th annual Parliament Day, the message echoing through the corridors of Westminster and Whitehall was clear: the time for strategy is over; now is the time for delivery.

With the Government’s Industrial Strategy highlighting life sciences as a key priority sector, our delegation of 35 senior sector leaders arrived with a unified voice and a definitive roadmap to ensure innovative companies can start, scale and stay in the UK.

Setting the scene: the KME framework

The day kicked off bright and early with a breakfast briefing, where Prof. Chris Molloy, Dr Emma Lawrence, and Dr Martin Turner welcomed delegates and set the strategic tone.

To prime our members for a packed gauntlet of political engagement, we were joined by Rob Ede, former Special Adviser in the Department of Health and now Senior Director and Head of Corporate Affairs at Eli Lilly. Rob shared a disciplined, simple framework for high-impact political engagement:

• K – Know your audience: Understand exactly who you are meeting, their motivations and why they’ve taken the time to sit down with the sector.
• M – Map the meeting: Identify areas of political alignment, build quick consensus and focus on mutual wins for the government and the economy.
• E – Execute your plan: Stay focused, remain concise and land the specific policy points that will drive the greatest impact.

Armed with this KME mindset, our delegates split into groups, navigating airport-style security at Portcullis House and Westminster Hall to bring our priority asks directly to the decision-makers.

The House of Commons: highlighting changing climate for biotech

From early-stage financing hurdles to data accessibility, the morning meetings tackled the core operational friction points head-on. Stakeholders like Kenan Poleo (Director of the Office for Life Sciences) sat down with BIA delegates, including leaders from VasoDynamics, Resolution Therapeutics, Oxford Nanopore and Constructive Bio, to discuss bridging the funding gap between pre- and post-revenue companies.

At midday, the delegation reassembled for a vibrant lunch reception in the House of Commons’ Thames Pavilion, graciously hosted by Steve Yemm MP (Mansfield).

Steve Yemm opened the reception by urging bold, consistent legislative action across health data and clinical trials to protect the UK's competitive edge. Taking the podium next, BIA CEO Prof. Chris Molloy framed the broader macroeconomic picture and compared the current seismic shifts in pharma and biotech to a kind of climate change in how global innovation is valued. His challenge to the room was clear: we must stop treating UK successes as anomalies.

Inside Number 10: championing the growth journey

The momentum continued straight into the afternoon, peaking with a flagship meeting behind the famous black door of Number 10 Downing Street.

The BIA delegation, featuring senior executives from Bicycle Therapeutics, Orchard Therapeutics, Immunocore, Autolus Therapeutics and Relation Therapeutics, met with Special Advisers to the Prime Minister.

Throughout the day's 23 meetings, our policy asks remained consistent:

• Unlocking domestic capital: Prioritising life sciences within the British Business Bank’s strategy and tapping into domestic pension funds via the British Growth Partnership so UK companies aren't forced to the US to scale.
• Harnessing health data: transitioning HDRS away from short-term revenue targets and ensuring UK startups have affordable, functional infrastructure to access health data safely.
• Clinical trial leadership: scaling the NIHR Industry Hub to centralise coordination and radically accelerate trial recruitment via existing UK health data assets.
• Modernising access and reimbursement: building on the progress of the US-UK pharmaceuticals deal to deliver sustainable and competitive investment in innovative medicines.

From conversations to action

As the sun set over Westminster, delegates gathered at the closing drinks reception to trade notes, download insights and celebrate an exhausting but incredibly successful day of advocacy.

The message of Parliament Day 2026 is that the UK remains a vibrant, serious ecosystem, one where the government is actively listening to industry. However, listening must now convert into legislative delivery, particularly ahead of the upcoming Health Bill debates.

We owe a massive thank you to our brilliant BIA members for volunteering their time and expertise, and to the parliamentarians and civil servants who made space to engage with our sector. The lines of communication are wide open, and the BIA will continue to represent your voice to ensure the UK remains the premier global destination for life sciences.

Keep an eye out for our upcoming May edition of Lab bench to front bench, where we will share the full breakdown of how these conversations are actively shaping ongoing policy development.