"Big pharmaceutical companies have ditched or paused nearly 2bn in planned UK investments so far this year, causing suffering to patients, as ministers gear up for discussions with Donald Trump amid a row over drug pricing. The government's plan for the life science sector, a key pillar of the economy, has been thrown into disarray, after US drugmaker MSD's shock announcement last Wednesday that it would scrap its 1bn London research centre. Two days later, AstraZeneca decided to halt a planned 200m expansion of its research facilities in Cambridge."
"Combined with a scrapped project by AstraZeneca in Liverpool and a shelved Eli Lilly lab in London, four projects worth more than 1.7bn have been pulled or paused this year. In total, decisions over 13 major projects or companies have damaged the UK's pharma industry since 2022, also including site closures and stock market delistings. Pharma companies have accused the government of not spending enough on new medicines, arguing that there is little incentive for them to develop drugs and test them in a country that does not value innovation sufficiently."
Nearly £2bn of planned pharmaceutical investment in the UK has been ditched or paused this year, harming patients and destabilising the life sciences sector. MSD cancelled a £1bn London research centre and AstraZeneca halted a £200m Cambridge expansion; combined with a scrapped Liverpool project and a shelved Eli Lilly lab, four projects worth over £1.7bn have been pulled or paused. Decisions affecting 13 major projects since 2022 include site closures and stock market delistings, further weakening the pharma industry. Pharma companies say insufficient government spending on new medicines reduces incentives to develop and test drugs in the UK. MPs will question MSD and other industry and government representatives while the US ambassador urged the chancellor to offer better pricing deals ahead of the US president's visit and his criticism of foreign freeloading on US innovation.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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