AstraZeneca chief tells Parliament the proposed new conference centre is on hold

Posted byCambridge Town OwlPosted inUncategorized

…and thus a complete waste of an evening going to the public consultation that took place the day before the news was announced!

Have a listen to the extended intro Tom Keith-Roach of AZ here as he is asked by the Commons Science, Innovation and Technology Committee whether the leaked announcement is a pause or a ‘stop’

Above – Screengrab of what AZ proposed at their consultation event last week that I went to and wrote about here.

This was the second big announcement of investment not going ahead in the sector.

“Earlier this week Merck, which had already begun construction on a site in London’s King’s Cross which was due to be completed by 2027, said it no longer planned to occupy it.”

Above – BBC News Business 12 Sept 2025

Some commentators noted that this is a classic ‘tag team’ move by a sector to pressure a government to change its policies. Whether that’s the case or not will be revealed in the Budget on 26 November 2025. Expect a host of in-depth conversations between ministers and the firms concerned.

Note this goes beyond what’s happening in the UK

The current US administration has put huge pressure on multinational firms to relocate activities back to the USA – with various threats of retaliation if they do not do so. One of the economic drivers is to reduce the longstanding US trade deficit. Another is to reduce the US economy’s dependence on imports – in particular of manufactured goods made in other countries, especially potential economic/political/military rivals.

“How much of the USA’s trade policies is affecting your policies on investment in the UK?”

Good question – have a listen to the response from AstraZeneca here

There’s clearly much more to run with this – especially as we are now in Cambridge Tech Week with all sorts of things happening in the city centre & on the science parks.

If you are interested in the longer term future of Cambridge, and on what happens at the local democracy meetings where decisions are made, feel free to: