Liverpool: New £450m vaccine manufacturing hub announced in Budget

The vaccine hub will be built on AstraZeneca's existing site in Speke

A £450m vaccine manufacturing hub is set to be built in the north west of England, the chancellor has announced.

Jeremy Hunt said in his Budget speech that AstraZeneca planned to invest the £450m in Speke in Liverpool as part of a total investment of £650m in the UK.

The Treasury said the investment was dependent on "mutual agreement with the UK government and third parties".

AstraZeneca said it demonstrated their "ongoing confidence in UK life sciences".

As part of the £650m total investment the pharmaceutical company said it would also expand its footprint on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus.

Mr Hunt said: "AstraZeneca's investment plans are a vote of confidence in the attractiveness of UK as a life sciences superpower and strengthen our resilience for future health emergencies."

The investment in Liverpool was said by the government to be for the research, development, and manufacture of vaccines, "building on the site's current role in supplying the world leading childhood vaccination programme".

'Driving innovation'

The new facility would be designed and built to be operationally net zero with power supplied from renewable energy sources.

AstraZeneca's chief executive officer, Sir Pascal Soriot, said the planned investment would "enhance the UK's pandemic preparedness and demonstrates our ongoing confidence in UK life sciences".

He added: "We will continue to support the UK in driving innovation and patient access, building on the strong foundations which have been put in place."

Dr Isabel Oliver, chief scientific officer at the UK Health Security Agency, said: "This investment will bolster the development of the UK's vaccine capabilities and life sciences sector - critical components of the country's resilience to future health threats."

In a statement to announce the plans, the Treasury said the investment needed the agreement of the UK Government and "third parties" and depended on "successful completion of regulatory processes".