Days later, AstraZeneca announced it had paused plans to invest £200 million at a Cambridge research site. At the start of the trip, the British pharmaceutical giant GSK revealed plans to put nearly £22 billion into US R&D and manufacturing over the next five years. A boost to the UK industry came on Thursday with vaccine-maker Moderna’s announcement that it had opened a new manufacturing base in Oxfordshire. The company said it is the UK’s first facility to manufacture mRNA jabs onshore. Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the “new cutting-edge facility” in Oxfordshire marks the “next pivotal moment in boosting our nation’s health, innovation and economy”.
