South Cambs MP Anthony Browne welcomed the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy last week for a tour of the constituency's thriving life sciences sector.

Kwasi Kwarteng visited Cambridge Biomedical Campus on Friday and was shown the facilities, including the headquarters of AstraZeneca and biotechnology company ABCam.

He also met with local life sciences companies to discuss the sector and to explore how South Cambs can help drive the UK life sciences industry.

Life sciences companies make up a significant element of the local economy in Cambridgeshire. As well as its role in the fight against COVID-19, the industry is also a significant employer, with the biomedical campus alone employing more than 20,000 workers.

AstraZeneca, famous for its role in developing the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, maintains its headquarters and a range of office and lab facilities on the campus.

Mr Browne said: "Right now, life sciences companies are helping to save the world. We have to ensure our UK industry has the support needed from national government to succeed and grow."

The South Camps MP has previously hosted the Life Sciences Minister, Lord Bethell, in the constituency, and joined him in a tour of the AstraZeneca testing centre on the biomedical campus by Addenbrooke's Hospital.

He has since written to the UK's top mobile network operators last year urging them to support life scientists, in a letter co-signed by the heads of the district's life science campuses.

Mr Kwarteng has also engaged with the industry throughout the pandemic, highlighting the importance of having a strong domestic medicines and diagnostics manufacturing industry.

This has included launching a £20 million fund to grow and strengthen the UK's capabilities, as well as encouraging companies to deploy new technologies and build new factories.

Mr Browne added: "I am beyond proud of the contribution made by companies and scientists right here in South Cambs to the life science industry, and it was a pleasure to offer the Secretary of State just a small glimpse into the huge contribution we have yet to offer."