Singapore Government Press Release

Media Relations Division, Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts,

MITA Building, 140 Hill Street, 2nd Storey, Singapore 179369

Tel: 6837-9666

Mr Paul Madden

British Deputy High Commissioner

Mr Les Dangerfield

Director, British Council Singapore

Polytechnic Principals & CEOs

Distinguished guests

Staff and students of Singapore�s polytechnics

Good morning to all of you.

It gives me great pleasure to join you this morning for the opening of this conference on the life sciences. Whilst advances in IT during the latter decades of the twentieth century might reasonably earn that period the title "the information technology era", the early decades of the 21^st century will almost certainly be seen as the biotechnology era. Advances in information technology have enabled us to process ever greater quantities of data at greater speeds and with smaller machines - indeed the decoding of the human genome was only made possible by these advances. Biotechnology will, within the next ten to twenty years, affect our lives in much more profound ways. The issues which biotechnology is raising are already the subject of intense interest and debate around the world, in government, the media and in universities and schools.

To name just a few of the questions arising from advances in the life sciences:

Are genetically modified crops safe to eat and will they have detrimental effects on the environment?

Should DNA evidence about individuals be used by insurance companies when accepting and setting premiums for health and life insurance policies?

Should stem cell research be permitted and if so, how should it be controlled?

Should human cloning be allowed?

Should companies identifying genes be allowed to patent them?

How different societies answer these and other questions emerging from the life sciences will depend on the balance of values that they strive to maintain, now and in the future. But the debate on values will not be shaped in isolation of scientific advance. Values will evolve, or receive new interpretation, in coming decades as knowledge itself advances - knowledge of the potential benefits and risks of scientific experimentation and innovation, for the individual and for society and humankind.

The economic opportunities being thrown up by the life sciences are already becoming evident. Major new industries will spring from research, expertise and intellectual capital in the life sciences. Most of you would be aware of some of the measures that the Singapore government has taken in this respect, to develop the biomedical sciences as one of the key areas of growth in the knowledge-based economy.

We have pledged resources to attract and groom talent, and to establish a holistic and balanced regulatory and ethical framework for the biomedical sciences to flourish. The Economic Development Board has set up a S$1 billion corporate R&D fund to attract leading industry players to set up world-class corporate research centres in Singapore. This is complemented by a S$1 billion Biomedical Sciences Investment Fund to co-invest in biotech start-ups and joint ventures.

As for public R&D, the Government has set up the Biomedical Research Council to fund, direct and coordinate research in the biomedical sciences. We will continue to invest in our research institutes and in research programmes at the universities, hospitals and specialty medical centres. PhD Scholarships are also being offered through A*STAR to create a pool of well-trained biomedical research talent. Human capital is the engine for our national biomedical initiatives.

As research in the biomedical sciences in Singapore is extending into new areas like genomics, genetic screening and embryonic stem cells, an ethical framework is also being put in place to guide research and maintain standards. We established the Bio-ethics Advisory Committee (BAC) two years ago, with the responsibility to examine the legal, ethical and social implications of life sciences research. The Government has recently accepted the recommendations made by the BAC on human stem cell research and cloning. These recommendations were made after a thorough survey of current practices in the leading jurisdictions, and extensive consultation with religious and community groups in Singapore. The Committee will also monitor international research trends and the ethical standards adopted by leading centres of research in biomedical sciences around the world.

The Ministry of Education is taking a holistic approach to life sciences education. We are seeking to nurture budding talents in the life sciences so as to grow top quality research expertise in the field. We also want to equip the young at large with the basic knowledge and tools to understand what developments in the life sciences mean for all of us.

While the base of the life sciences is biology, it is the interplay with ideas, techniques and concepts from other disciplines that will lead to breakthroughs in knowledge, and enhance applications in the life sciences. It is a new wave of knowledge, distinct from our existing subject disciplines, and intrinsically interdisciplinary. We intend to build links between mathematics, the physical sciences and biology - areas in which Singapore students have been traditionally strong - to allow them to ride and navigate this new wave of knowledge.

Many of you here today will play a key role in taking the life sciences forward in Singapore. Your ability and skills, and those of others like you in our schools, polytechnics and universities, will ultimately determine if we make it to the leadership ranks in this new field, helping Singapore continue to advance and prosper as an economy.

We cannot go it alone in the life sciences, or for that matter in any other knowledge-based industry. Singapore has always thrived because of its willingness and ability to work with other countries, not least with the United Kingdom, which in a number of ways represents a natural partner in the life sciences. The British have a long pedigree in this field. The discovery of DNA in the UK by James Watson and Francis Crick in 1953 in some senses gives the UK right of claim as the birthplace of the modern life sciences. It has since been the fount of several of the milestone breakthroughs in life science, including its lead role in the human genome project and the cloning of the first animal, Dolly the Sheep in 1997.

We are fortunate to have with us here today accomplished scientists who are continuing the UK�s innovative work in the life sciences at some of the leading centres of excellence in the field.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish our guests from the UK universities an interesting and fruitful visit to Singapore. I hope that new ties between our countries and new initiatives in the life sciences emerge from your visit here.

Finally I would like to wish you all a satisfying and rewarding day�s conference.

Thank you.