Mixed reactions from Pharma/Bio to UK Budget for bioscience

The harsh Budget announcement from the UK's coalition Conservative/Liberal Democrat government yesterday by Chancellor George Osborne, aimed at massive savings and some additional taxes to bring public finances under control, received mixed responses from the country's bioscience sector.

The BioIndustry Association (BIA) believes that the Budget - which proposes a total fiscal tightening of £113 billion ($167.2 billion) over the next five years - falls short of helping to develop an economy based on innovative business such as those in the UK's bioscience sector.

The increase in Capital Gains Tax for higher rate tax payers will dis-incentivize investment in the small- and medium-sized enterprises that will drive the future growth of the UK economy as outlined by the Coalition Government, the BIA stated. The decision to increase Entrepreneurs' Relief from £2 million to £5 million will be of little value for investors in bioscience companies as it is more often than not the case that they do not hold the minimum 5% of the company and therefore will not benefit from this relief, it added.