The pharmaceutical industry has delivered a stark message to the UK government: provide a “proper plan” to improve the market for medicines, or watch as more companies leave. The call, led by Sanofi’s UK chief Paul Naish, comes amid a slew of announcements of canceled projects and paused investments by some of the world’s largest drugmakers.
Naish stated that Britain is at a “critical point” and needs a clear roadmap from the Treasury, developed in collaboration with health and business departments, to raise spending on new treatments. He described a dysfunctional situation with infighting between government departments, which is undermining confidence across the sector.
This lack of a coherent strategy is already costing the UK dearly. MSD (known as Merck in the US) has abandoned its £1bn London research center. Eli Lilly has suspended its plans for a London “gateway lab,” an incubator for new drugs. Sanofi itself has halved its clinical trials and is holding back on any new major investments.
The industry is seeking specific, tangible changes. Key demands include increasing NHS spending on medicines to align with other G7 countries, updating NICE’s 25-year-old price assessment thresholds, and lowering the high “clawback” rate on company revenues. Without such a plan, the UK risks a continued flight of capital and innovation.