The Chief Executive of the Medical Research Council, Professor Colin Blakemore has welcomed Sir David Cooksey’s review of the design and funding arrangements of the public funding of health research in the UK. The findings of the review were announced by Gordon Brown in his pre-budget report to MPs.
Professor Colin Blakemore said:
The Cooksey Report provides a perceptive analysis of the ‘gaps’ in the translational pathway between basic research and treatment development and in introducing new treatments into clinical practice.

We welcome the Report’s recognition of the strength of the UK health research base and share the review team’s belief that current funding levels for basic science should be sustained. MRC has been in the forefront of efforts to build up translational and clinical research and to embed the culture of translation in our scientific community.

Supporting research with the aim of improving human health is at the heart of our mission. As we said in our submission to the Cooksey Review team, we fully embrace the Government’s vision of a more integrated health R&D system across the entire UK. We embrace the opportunities set out in the Cooksey Report and look forward to working with Professor John Bell and all the other partners in the new organisational structures announced today.