The ill-fated millennium dome could be given a new lease of life as a biomedical research centre under a plan being developed by the Wellcome Trust.

Reports on Sunday suggest that the medical charity has begun negotiations with the government on a £300 million plan that would see the controversial structure in Greenwich, London, turned into scientific research laboratories.

However, the Trust has not yet made it clear how the £300 million would be divided between buying the dome and converting its facilities, reports the Sunday Telegraph.

The charity has declined to comment on the detail of the reports, citing commercial confidentiality.

The Wellcome Trust is the world's largest medical charity with assets of £15 billion and an annual expenditure of around £600 million.

Finally finding a new owner for the dome would be a relief to the government. The project, which cost £600 million and continues to cost around £1 million a month for maintenance, continues to cause headaches for Labour.

On February 15, preferred bidder status for the Legacy consortium was withdrawn. English Partnerships, which is managing the dome bidding process for the government, decided that while their bid made progress toward meeting the preferred bidder terms, they did not fully meet them.

With Legacy's excusive negotiating rights expired, the government is now considering expressions of interest from other parties.