Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - (Page 14) 14 Profile August 2008 Pharmaceutical Executive Europe Union presidency’ (that is, France). But the stronger UK infrastructure has yet to lend its support to the European industry, according to Poincelet. “Nearly ten years ago, I was dealing with UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) and I had the feeling they were playing very bi-laterally between the US and the UK but ignoring the rest of the Continent. This attitude may have changed since then of course. But I remember saying to a senior official of UKTI at the time that the UK should remember the African saying: ‘When you kill your friend to feed the lion, you become the lion’s next meal.’ If you go “We have to make the politicians understand that if we don’t take biotech seriously then tourism will be our premier industry in the future.” Euronext, really puts life sciences high on their list of priorities,” he adds. “We’re putting together a pipeline between the US and Europe so that the financing comes from the US, because we’re not getting it from Europe.” Faced with these ongoing funding and support difficulties, we have to ask if Europe will remain too fractured to work as one, each country too preoccupied with its own nationalistic concerns to pull together in the interests of a truly European biotech force? Certainly, this is a theme the October event is prepared to tackle head-on — one of its debates is entitled ‘Nationalism is the greatest enemy of biotechnology in Europe.’ Poincelet himself sees Europe divided into two ‘camps:’ the Anglo-Saxon members and the Latin members. “The big split,” he says, “is between those two worlds. However, through the events like EuroBio, they can start to realise that if they’re not united then it won’t work. United we stand, divided we fall.” A biotech renaissance? below the critical mass that makes the biotech sector in Europe big enough to be attractive, then you will disappear.” Ten years later, Poincelet believes this is exactly what’s happening. Europe has not yet achieved the critical mass it needs. “We have to make the politicians understand that if we don’t take this seriously then tourism will be our premier industry in the future.” He says of his UK experience that he was surprised to see that the London stock exchange was not putting any priority on the European life sciences industry. Instead there were priorities on Canada, China and Russia. So “what we’ve done with EuroBio, is make sure that the New York Stock Exchange, together with Poincelet sees hope, however, in the growing buoyancy of the developing biocluster regions, particularly in the Latin south. The Bioclusters in Milan and Barcelona, he says, are making great strides in the industry. “They have realised how important the health and eco-industry sectors are, and they are really putting themselves together to become the best in Europe and the best outside Europe.” Perhaps, then, EuroBio’s job could be a simpler one, one of fusing the “three categories of European cluster” successfully together. These are the big, country-specific clusters (or megaclusters); the smaller but cross-border ‘metaclusters,’ such as ScanBalt; and the niche clusters, focusing, for example, on green biotech. The bioclusters are “a very healthy thing,” says Poincelet, “because what happened in the US ten years ago is taking place here now. In the US now you have maybe nine leading clusters; in Europe you have 12–14 big clusters.” In order to mobilise this potential European strength, to solidify the united front we need to size up to the US, Poincelet believes we need to take inspiration from history. “The wealthiest time in Europe was during the Renaissance period, when the cities were working together as part of metaclusters. Venice worked with Vienna; Milan with Warsaw. The boundaries were not between countries but between clusters, and this is what could happen with biotechnology in Europe.” This indeed could be our greatest hope for the development of a truly great European biotech industry, so we have to be thankful that Eric Poincelet his team at EuroBio remain tirelessly committed to making it happen. ERIC POINCELET: CAREER IN BRIEF EuroBio’s commissioner general Eric Poincelet previously served as director general at The World Life Sciences Forum BioVision, launched in 1998. At the same time he was CEO of BioSquare SAS, which he founded in 2001 to develop at the request of the European Commission a partnering event at the interface of biotechs, large corporations, finance and research institutions. Eric’s previous experience includes tenure as COO for Edap Technomed Inc. in Boston and marketing manaher of Nuclear Medicine at Philips Medical Systems’ Headquarters in The Netherlands. Eric is a graduate of Paris VI University (Jussieu), and holds a post-graduate degree in Engineering/Fine Chemistry, and an MBA from ESSEC in Paris.
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 Contents From the Editor News and Analysis Calendar The Calm Before the Storm Steering Pharma in Russia Built on Sand Renaissance Man IT Meets IMI Send for the Software Specialists Know Your eMarket Last Words Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 (Page Cover1) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 (Page Cover2) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Contents (Page 3) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Contents (Page 4) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - From the Editor (Page 5) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - News and Analysis (Page 6) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - News and Analysis (Page 7) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Calendar (Page 8) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Calendar (Page 9) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - The Calm Before the Storm (Page 10) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Steering Pharma in Russia (Page 11) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Built on Sand (Page 12) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Renaissance Man (Page 13) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Renaissance Man (Page 14) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - IT Meets IMI (Page 15) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - IT Meets IMI (Page 16) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - IT Meets IMI (Page 17) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Send for the Software Specialists (Page 18) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Send for the Software Specialists (Page 19) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Know Your eMarket (Page 20) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Know Your eMarket (Page 21) Pharmaceutical Executive Europe - August 2008 - Last Words (Page 22)
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