The most ambitious research project of the new, deficit-cutting British government has just got the go-ahead to start construction. The £500 million (US$ 778 million) UK Centre for Medical Research and Innovation (UKCMRI) will be home to 1,250 scientists. Led by Nobel-prize-winner Paul Nurse, the institute hopes to become a magnet for the brightest researchers in the world. Nurse wants to recruit top mid-career researchers and hold on to them for a few years before they move on to other positions. The centre will also strive to avoid traditional departments in a bid to encourage interdisciplinary work.

Of course, all this lofty stuff can’t happen without a building. Supporters had hoped to base the UKCMRI in the north London borough of Camden, close to the Wellcome Trust, and University College London, who are both underwriting the project (along with the Government and Cancer Research UK). Local residents were less excited about the proposal: they feared that the lab might bring dangerous pathogens into the neighbourhood, and that the formidable building might overshadow its surroundings.

Despite these objections, the project recieved final approval from Camden’s Council yesterday. Construction is expected to begin in the Spring and will finish by 2015.

Credit: UKCMRI