by business editor Trevor Sturgess

A Kent expert is the UK's new champion for skills in bioscience and pharmaceuticals.

Brian Szukala, from Eastry, near Sandwich, is helping to develop a new work-based foundation degree to boost skills across a sector that employs thousands of people in the county.

Mr Szukala has spent 28 years in the industry, including key roles with Beecham and Kent-based Pfizer, and also worked with young people at The Prince's Trust, a charity founded by Prince Charles.

He aims to strengthen the links between universities and industry to increase the skills of the existing workforce and attract new entrants who are looking for an alternative to the standard university degree route.

Mr Szukala has teamed up with the University of Kent to develop the foundation degree in bioscience and pharmaceuticals, and urged firms to help design the new qualifications around the skills they need from their workforce.

"The response so far has been positive, but we need more employers to work with us so that the new degrees are a true representation of what the industry needs," he said.

The £2.9 million scheme, funded by the Higher Education Funding Council, is being run by Cogent Sector Skills Council, the Higher Education Academy UK Physical Sciences Centre, the University of Hull, and SEMTA (the Sector Skills Council for science, engineering and manufacturing technologies).