Chris Whitehouse, a political consultant and expert on medical technology policy and regulation at Whitehouse Communications, an advisor to MedTech suppliers, chair of the Urology Trade Association, and governor of the Anscombe Bioethics Centre, reports on a new initiative from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology that will drive access to new technologies, including AI and bioengineering in the MedTech sector.
Science Secretary, Peter Kyle MP, has launched a new Regulatory Innovation Office [RIO] to speed up public access to new technologies by slashing out-dated regulations that hold back development and take-up of new technologies.
Highlighting benefits to healthcare from AI, digital technology and engineering biology, Peter Kyle said: "The launch of the Regulatory Innovation Office, a key manifesto commitment, is a big step forward in bringing the UK’s most promising new technologies to the public faster and safely while kickstarting economic growth."
The new RIO will support regulators to update regulation, speeding up approvals, and ensuring different regulatory bodies work together smoothly. It will work to continuously inform the government of regulatory barriers to innovation, set priorities for regulators which align with the government’s broader ambitions and support regulators to develop the capability they need to meet them and grow the economy.
Playing both to the government’s commitment to economic growth and the more rapid uptake of new technologies in the National Health Service, the new office will also bring regulators together and work to remove obstacles and outdated regulations to the benefit of businesses and the public, unlocking the power of innovation from these sectors to generate tens of billions of pounds for the UK economy in the coming years.
As well as engineering biology and AI in the health sector, the RIO will also focus initially on the UK’s rapidly-growing space sector, and on connected and autonomous technology such as drones delivering for the emergency services, getting emergency supplies to remote areas quickly and efficiently.
The delivery of a plethora of new projects and strategies shows a determination by government to harness the benefits of new technologies, but I’m old enough to remember Harold Wilson saying, sixty years ago [1963], that his government would use the ‘scientific revolution’ and ‘harness the white heat of technology’ to transform the UK economy.
History suggests that the real challenge for Science Secretary, Peter Kyle, and Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, is going to be to get all the recent initiatives working together in a coordinated way, driving towards the same destination. The MedTech sector can only hope that they succeed!
Comments upon or questions about this article can be addressed to chris.whitehouse@whitehousecomms.com
