New vision for medicines industry in Asian CenturyNew vision for medicines industry in Asian Century

Medicines Australia chairman Mark Masterson today announced a new vision for the Australian medicines industry, to double manufacturing output, exports and R&D investment over the next decade.

Speaking at the National Press Club, Mr Masterson said that with the right policy settings, the medicines industry in Australia was ideally placed to harness the dramatic rise of Asia, the expanding global medicines market, and the emergence of high-tech biological medicines.

“The vision is to double our manufacturing output from $7 billion in 2012 to $14 billion over the next decade and to establish a number of highly specialised biomanufacturing plants,” Mr Masterson said.

“Double our exports from $4bn to $8bn; double our R&D investment from $1bn to $2bn; creating many more high-skilled jobs and increasing the number of Australians accessing clinical trials to 30,000.

“This vision is about sustainable growth, and creating an environment that can attract investment; that can establish Australia as a world-class centre for medical research and drive collaboration between industry and the broader research community.

“We have a genuine, once-in-a-generation opportunity to grow the medicines industry into one of the key Australian high-tech industries that can lay the foundation for a new economy.”

Realising the vision was dependant on getting central policy settings right in four key areas, Mr Masterson said:

  • establishing an industry-neutral Government-led strategic co-investment fund
  • expediting clinical trial reform to improve Australia’s international competitiveness
  • lowering the corporate tax rate to 25% and maintaining the R&D tax credit
  • securing a stable, predictable business and policy environment in Australia.

“Whether or not we can capitalise on this opportunity depends on whether we can quickly deliver the right policy settings in these four key focus areas,” he said.

Mr Masterson’s address is available here (please follow link)

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Contact Person:

Jamie Nicholson
Media Communications Manager
Phone: 0419 220 293
Email:
 Jamie.Nicholson@medicinesaustralia.com.au