The economic impact of charity funded medical research in Wales
A Fraser of Allander Institute report commissioned by the British Heart Foundation found that investment into medical research by the third sector plays a vital role in not just the health of the nation but also the health of the economy. The report shows that the third sector drives growth and supports thousands of highly skilled jobs across the whole of Wales.
The report found:
- Charities are major funders of medical research. Medical research funding by charities has been estimated to be 35% of all third sector and public funding of medical research in Wales, with active research funding of £21m in 2018.
- Without charity funding, the public sector would therefore need to increase their direct funding of health-related research in Wales by an estimated 53% to cover the shortfall.
- Every £1 million spent on medical research funding in Wales by charities supports £2.30 million of output, £1.47 million of GVA and 26 jobs.
- Results estimate that in 2019, medical research funding by charities supported 975 jobs, £86m in output and £55m in GVA in Wales.
- In 2020 Wales experienced a drop in medical research expenditure by charities. Reported expenditure in Wales in 2020 was around £3 million lower than in 2019 – a fall of around 8%. This was directly caused by the pandemic and resulting lockdowns.
These findings highlight the economic impact of charity funded medical research in Wales. We believe charity funded research can play a pivotal role in helping the nation recover economically from the effects of the pandemic. However, further investment is needed to unlock the potential of medical research to contribute to Wales’ economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.
We believe that the Welsh Government could support this sector further by increasing funding across the whole of the medical research landscape in Wales.