Liverpool City Region set for major innovation developments

Mayor Steve Rotherham has hailed a “momentous day” for Liverpool City Region in which three major developments were announced.A five-year, £5m collaboration was revealed on Thursday between Liverpool’s Pandemic Institute and Speke-based vaccine giant Seqirus aimed at preventing a devastating influenza outbreak.Also confirmed was a further £1.7m government funding deal for the region’s iiCON Consortium, which brings together industry, academia and the NHS to accelerate products and innovations linked to infection control.And a refreshed Science and Innovation Audit (SIA) was launched that highlights the Liverpool City Region’s specialisms in infection control, materials chemistry and AI solutions, plus emerging strengths in Net Zero and maritime.The Mayor joined executives from Seqirus, the Pandemic Institute, and the University of Liverpool to reveal the three initiatives at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine before touring the iiCON laboratories.Steve Rotherham said: “Our region has demonstrated time and time again that when we are given the right support, we are more than capable of delivering an even greater return to the Treasury. As today’s announcements show, areas like ours are ripe for investment.”Dr Raja Rajaram, head of Seqirus Global Medical Strategy said: “Seqirus’ mission is committed to protecting public health through partnerships such as this academic collaboration with the Pandemic Institute, through the University of Liverpool, which will allow us to expand our knowledge base through evidence generation and access breakthrough scientific and technological advancements. This moment is doubly exciting for the value it will bring to both of our organisations and especially our scientific teams based in the UK.”Professor Tom Solomon, director of the Pandemic Institute, said: “We’re delighted that our founding partner, University of Liverpool, has taken the lead on this partnership with Seqirus and we look forward to bringing our combined intelligence and resources together to generate scientific excellence with societal impact for all.”