Regulatory brokerage: competitive advantage and regulation in the field of regenerative medicine

This article concerns the roles of entrepreneurial scientists in the co-production of life science research and regulation. Regulatory brokerage, defined as a mode of strategic planning and as the negotiation of regulation based on comparative advantage and competition, is expressed in scientific activities that take advantage of regulatory difference. This article is based on social science research in Japan, Thailand, India and the UK. Using five cases related to Japan’s international activities in the field of regenerative medicine, I argue that, driven by competitive advantage, regulatory brokerage at lower levels of managerial organization and governance is emulated at higher levels. In addition, as regulatory brokerage affects the creation of regulation at national, bilateral and global levels, new regulation may be based on competition in regulatory advantage rather than on ethical and scientific values. I argue that regulatory brokerage as the basis for regulatory reform bypasses issues that need to be decided by a broader public. More space is needed for international and political debate about the socio-political consequences of the global diversity of regulation in the field of the life sciences.