Chancellor Rachel Reeves has called on big pharmaceutical companies to invest more in Britain, as she hinted at an increase in the price the NHS pays for medicines. This move could potentially convince these firms to resume investments they had paused due to government pressure.
The UK's biopharmaceutical sector is currently facing a crisis. 163,600 people are trying to find careers in this field, which generated £98.4 billion in annual sales last year. However, nearly £2 billion of pharma projects have been scrapped or paused so far this year, threatening over 1,000 jobs.
The situation has become complicated by geopolitics. Donald Trump's pressure on pharmaceutical companies to lower their US prices could be affecting the UK industry. To combat this, ministers are considering raising the amount the NHS pays pharmaceutical firms for medicines by up to 25%, which would require additional funding and put pressure on Reeves's budget ahead of the November 26th budget announcement.
The crisis is not just an economic issue but also has a direct impact on patients. Giles Lomax, CEO of Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), warns that if the standoff continues, "patients will suffer." He believes better drugs do not just cost money; they can ultimately save money. Zolgensma, one of three gene therapies for SMA, has an NHS list price of £1.8 million but can enable children to live normal lives with early treatment.
Meanwhile, graduates in the biomedical sciences are struggling to find jobs in this field due to a high level of competition. David Poolman says it's "not encouraging" if companies are pulling out of the UK and that he has applied for 170 roles as research assistant without getting any job offers. Companies need a reasonable profit margin, but there is also concern about the sustainability of the market.
Janet Hemingway, a professor of vector biology, believes that treatments for infectious diseases like antibiotics have become "effectively a broken market." She warns that if the same happened with other drugs to treat cancer, we would be in trouble. Companies need to make some money, but governments will ultimately have to step in and subsidize the cost of research.
The crisis has also affected a half-built glass-fronted research centre near King's Cross station in London. Michael Wiseman believes smaller biotech firms will fill the space vacated by larger groups, providing cautious optimism for the future of the industry.
The UK's biopharmaceutical sector is currently facing a crisis. 163,600 people are trying to find careers in this field, which generated £98.4 billion in annual sales last year. However, nearly £2 billion of pharma projects have been scrapped or paused so far this year, threatening over 1,000 jobs.
The situation has become complicated by geopolitics. Donald Trump's pressure on pharmaceutical companies to lower their US prices could be affecting the UK industry. To combat this, ministers are considering raising the amount the NHS pays pharmaceutical firms for medicines by up to 25%, which would require additional funding and put pressure on Reeves's budget ahead of the November 26th budget announcement.
The crisis is not just an economic issue but also has a direct impact on patients. Giles Lomax, CEO of Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), warns that if the standoff continues, "patients will suffer." He believes better drugs do not just cost money; they can ultimately save money. Zolgensma, one of three gene therapies for SMA, has an NHS list price of £1.8 million but can enable children to live normal lives with early treatment.
Meanwhile, graduates in the biomedical sciences are struggling to find jobs in this field due to a high level of competition. David Poolman says it's "not encouraging" if companies are pulling out of the UK and that he has applied for 170 roles as research assistant without getting any job offers. Companies need a reasonable profit margin, but there is also concern about the sustainability of the market.
Janet Hemingway, a professor of vector biology, believes that treatments for infectious diseases like antibiotics have become "effectively a broken market." She warns that if the same happened with other drugs to treat cancer, we would be in trouble. Companies need to make some money, but governments will ultimately have to step in and subsidize the cost of research.
The crisis has also affected a half-built glass-fronted research centre near King's Cross station in London. Michael Wiseman believes smaller biotech firms will fill the space vacated by larger groups, providing cautious optimism for the future of the industry.
Like, I'm all for making sure the NHS gets the best meds for patients, but increasing prices could be a total bummer 
. I mean, companies need to make a profit or they won't invest in new research and treatments. And let's not forget about those grad students trying to find jobs - 170 roles without a single offer? That's just cruel 
. But at the same time, it makes sense that governments would want to subsidize costs to keep patients safe 
. I guess we'll just have to wait and see how it all plays out 
.
i mean think about all those 163k+ ppl trying to get careers in biopharm and nearly £2b worth of projects getting scrapped? that's a huge amount of talent being wasted 
we need more funding and support for research, not less 
I think we need a more balanced approach - not just about government pressure, but also about incentivizing innovation and sustainability. We can't put all the blame on Reeves or the NHS budget... let's get some creative thinking going on here 
Just think of all the jobs that will be created (or destroyed) when these big firms decide to pull out. Like, what's £2 billion to 1,000 people's livelihoods, right? 
But seriously, can we just get more funding and maybe some actual regulations to make sure this industry is working for everyone? Not just the shareholders... 
. I mean, think about it, medicines like Zolgensma can literally change people's lives for the better 
.
. I've got friends who are struggling to get hired as research assistants and it's just not okay 
. The government needs to find a way to support these companies while also making sure they're making a profit, but also that we can still access the medicines we need 
.
they were like "yeah sure" when gov was breathing down their necks but now they're all "oh wait we forgot how much money we made last year