A GOVERNMENT minister has helped open a new 'life changing' centre for diabetes research in Oxford.

Greg Clark, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, visited the Novo Nordisk Research Centre at Oxford University's Old Road campus yesterday.

The £115million centre will employ up to 100 researchers who will look to create new medicines to treat diabetes, a condition that affects 3.9million people in the UK.

With the number of people expected to be living with the condition predicted to increase by a million by 2035, the centre will collaborate with Oxford University to also find ways to detect type 2 diabetes earlier and gain a better understanding of insulin resistance.

Mr Clark was joined by the Danish Science Minister Tommy Ahlers to celebrate the international collaboration that has made the centre possible.

Denmark-based global healthcare company Novo Nordisk will invest around £115m over a period of 10 years.

Business Secretary Greg Clark said: “This centre has the potential to transform the way diabetes is treated in the future and improve the lives of people around the world.

"Our universities and research institutes are world beating and this international investment in the UK is a vote of confidence in both the talent we have and the quality of research and products our scientists develop."