UKRI Chair
Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz. Credit: UKRI
Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz is Chair of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
Sir Leszek has held senior leadership roles across research, medicine and higher education. He served as:
- Chair of Cancer Research UK from 2016 to 2023
- Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge from 2010 to 2017
- Chief Executive of the Medical Research Council from 2007 to 2010
In 2025, he was awarded a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire for services to cancer research, clinical research, medicine and charities.
Leszek Borysiewicz is an influential scientific administrator who has promoted biomedical education and clinical research through a number of senior positions in UK institutions. His own research career centred on the immune response to common viruses, and his work on a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine led to routine immunisation for girls against cervical cancer.
Leszek contributed to our understanding of how the immune system fights off viral infection, and why ‘harmless’ viruses can sometimes cause disease. The most common cause of cervical cancer is infection with HPV. Leszek led a team to develop a therapeutic vaccine against HPV infection and headed its first clinical trial in Europe.
He is a fellow of the Royal Society and was knighted for his vaccine research in 2001.
Last updated: 27 July 2026