What’s coming in 2026: Investment, data, regulation, engineering biology
January tends to jolt many of us back into reality. As we settle into the rhythms of daily life and gather our thoughts about the year ahead, our policy experts have weighed in on what the life sciences sector might expect in 2026.
From the long-awaited "unlocking" of pension capital to the establishment of national health data assets, 2026 is set to be the year where long-term policy missions meet operational reality.
Unlocking UK pension funds for investment
The UK Government’s – and indeed BIA’s – mission to unlock pension funds to increase investment in productive UK assets, such as scaling life science companies, to drive economic growth and better returns for savers has taken a long time to build up a head of steam, but 2026 looks like the year when the wheels will really begin turning.
Leading pension funds like Aegon, Natwest Cushon and Aviva has all committed funds to venture capital this year, but the sums suggest a toe in the water, rather than diving right in.
With mandation powers entering the statute in 2026, and a government willing to pull every lever available to generate growth, it really could be make or break for the pensions industry.
But they shouldn’t need pushing, the 21st Century is when biotechnology will transform our world, and the UK stands on a goldmine of innovation. We stand ready to help pension trustees and fund managers understand the great opportunities on their doorstep, which their Canadian, Australian and Californian peers have long recognised, and their pensioners have benefited from.
Health data
2026 will be make or break for the UK’s health data ecosystem. After decades of failed data initiatives and several reviews, the Government has announced the establishment of a national health data research service (HDRS) to streamline access to the UK’s national health data assets. Implemented correctly, the service could help cement the UK’s position as a leader in science, innovation and technology. However, if implementation goes awry, we risk more than a competitive opportunity, we risk damaging our reputation in life sciences for another decade.
The first year will be critical in gaining credibility and setting HDRS out on the right path. Mission number one is maintaining public trust and getting buy-in for this critical national ambition.
This is something that is hard fought for and easily lost, but results of large-scale public deliberations have shown that the public agree with using health data for public benefit. The challenge will be maintaining this in an ever-sceptical public.
The second challenge will be balancing the many needs of HDRS’s varied user group. From academics conducting health research to large pharma companies conducting multinational studies, the service will need to carefully manage expectations and be clear about what it will set out to achieve. Vital to Government’s health and growth missions will be facilitating access for the UK’s innovative community of SMEs. These small and scaling companies are working at the cutting edge of health innovation and are critical to driving economic growth.
If the service manages to deliver for this group, by streamlining governance and access, offering the right technical solutions and a competitive and affordable commercial offering, then it will be a win for the sector. So, my prediction for 2026? We will finish it in a very different place as far as health data is concerned, for better or worse.
Medicines regulation
2026 will be an important year for UK medicines regulation as the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) determines its next five-year strategy. The direction of travel is clear, with a shift towards risk-proportionate regulation and more flexible regulatory pathways which balance safety and innovation. The MHRA is responding not only to the coming wave of innovation across rare diseases, precision medicine and AI, but also to health system pressures, geopolitical dynamics and evolving patient preferences.
There is a clear opportunity for the MHRA to establish itself as a global leader in its field, helping to position the UK as a country of choice for clinical research and a first launch market for innovative new medicines. Translating this vision into an actionable plan is the critical next step, and the BIA is looking forward to working with the MHRA to turn this bold ambition into something tangible.
Engineering biology
The engineering biology sector can boost the UK’s life science profile on the global stage. However, to achieve this, the Government must create the supportive environment the UK’s early-stage engineering biology ecosystem needs to mature.
The UK and EU are in the midst of resetting relations, including negotiating a Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Agreement on plant and animal health. It would facilitate trade and make it easier for companies to import key reagents, but it could also affect the UK’s progressive regulatory framework, particularly the Precision Breeding Act. These negotiations could continue until 2027, but with the EU finally making an end of year breakthrough on the their equivalent legislation: New Genomic Techniques, it seems as if the UK and the EU’s approach to regulating gene edited plants will converge in 2026.
If progress continues in the same vein, the engineering biology community is likely to take a more favourable view of an EU-UK SPS deal in 2026. We are also seeing the Regulatory Innovation Office get into full swing, undertaking productive work to unblock regulatory hurdles for innovative products.
There are also indications that the Government may move to put the requirement to screen synthetic nucleic acid orders on a statutory footing in the coming year. The UK is aiming to position itself as a leader in responsible innovation, in line with the biosecurity strategy, and may want to secure a first mover advantage by making the current voluntary guidance statutory and signalling global leadership on biosecurity.
We sense that the Government and UKRI have heard the community’s consensus on the need to map the availability and demand for engineering biology scale-up infrastructure so that companies no longer need to search overseas. So, for the optimists amongst us, it seems likely that we will see this delivered in 2026.
