According to the BBC, pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is preparing to expand its Stevenage, Hertfordshire plant, which might result in the creation of up to 5,000 new jobs.

The campus is one of GSK's two global R&D hubs, and it houses the UK's largest cell and gene therapy research.

A third of the land will be sold off as part of the plan, which is estimated to bring in £400 million in fresh investment.

The project is expected to begin in 2022, according to the business. The new campus, which will be built next to GSK's existing Stevenage site, could eventually provide 100,000 square meters of commercial life sciences research and development space.

“The UK life sciences sector has been at its best for the past 18 months, and the UK has recently unveiled an ambitious 10-year vision for the UK life sciences sector,” GSK senior vice president Tony Wood said.

“By the end of the decade, we want Stevenage to be a top destination for medical and scientific research,” he continued.

Following criticism of its performance, the drug corporation has recently been under pressure from shareholders to restructure its businesses.

GSK is a leading vaccine manufacturer, but it has been slow to create a Covid-19 vaccine. Its Covid vaccine, which it is developing alongside Sanofi in France, is still in the testing phase.

GSK's consumer healthcare segment, which produces big-brand goods like Sensodyne and Panadol, has been sold, and the corporation is now focusing on creating new treatments and vaccines.