The Government has today announced progress to cut red tape and speed up research into motor neurone disease (MND) across the UK, enabling faster progress towards treatments. The full £50 million pledged for motor neurone disease (MND) research is being placed into the hands of researchers as quickly as possible.
- £29.5 million of government funding to be invested immediately through specialist research centres and partnerships with leading researchers
- A further £20.5 million to accelerate work on the most promising treatments has also been committed for use in MND research, available through open call processes
Work being done in the field of MND research has highlighted the impact that cutting-edge research can have, but also the progress still to be made to help sufferers of this debilitating condition.
Removing red tape will ensure funding reaches frontline researchers more quickly, enabling faster progress towards treatments. This will be done through Biomedical Research Centres, which are collaborations between academics and clinicians to translate breakthroughs in the lab into potential new treatments, diagnostics and medical technologies, to get funding to the most promising researchers who are already working in MND.
As well as this, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and Medical Research Council (MRC) will work together to ensure proposals are referred to the most appropriate scheme for consideration at the early idea stage.
This presents an opportunity for outstanding researchers to get further funding beyond the initial £50 million to get new treatments from the lab to patients.
Commenting John said, “We have all witnessed the devastating affect Motor neurone disease can have on people’s lives, as well as the friends and family of those affected. Today’s announcement will help accelerate research to find a cure and develop innovative treatments, and slashing the red tape will mean that the funding reaches frontline researchers who are the experts in their field, more quickly.
Here in the north we congratulate and remember campaigners and fundraisers like Rob Burrow, and Doddy Weir who sadly died from this terrible condition last month, and pay tribute to them for their contribution to the MND campaign which has brought us to where we are today.”