Member Article

EMA move to Amsterdam could damage Pharma/Biotech industry

Dr Emma Banks, CEO of Datatrial, has spoken out on the loss of the EMA and potential impact on Pharma/Biotech industry.

In November [2017] the European Commission announced the relocation of the EMA (European Medicines Agency) from London to Amsterdam post Brexit.

Dr Banks has voiced her concerns about what the loss of the EMA and the subsequent lack of clarity on regulatory alignment will mean to the UK and the region, which is fast-becoming a UK hotspot for clinical trials and has the highest capital value of medical and pharmaceutical exports in the UK.

She said: “The UK is already behind the rest of the EU in getting access to new medicines. A patient in the UK is 5 times less likely to get a new medicine than a patient in France or Germany and often new medicines licensed in the UK are up to 2 years behind France and Germany.

“Currently, the UK and consequently the northeast, punches above its weight in terms of R&D, is a world-leader in advancing science and host to many exceptional scientists but we may lose large numbers of scientists to Europe, which will put us at a huge disadvantage within the EU and the rest of the world.

“This is a particular concern in the northeast region as we currently have very strong academic research centres in our universities, which could be seriously impacted by a loss of brain power back to the EU.

“The buying power of the UK alone is tiny compared to the 27 countries left so given a choice many life science and biotech companies may be forced to focus on the EU and not the UK.

“Datatrial is an already a very international and outward looking company as most of our clients are based outside of the UK in Europe and USA, but I do fear that if the UK is arrogant enough to think it can go it alone (a no deal hard Brexit), then we could seriously damage the Pharma/Biotech industry in the UK - a sector which seems to be favoured within the Industrial Strategy.

“The clinical trials industry is already going through the biggest regulatory change in two decades, so we need to urge those negotiating our future to remember that the Pharma/Biotech industry is an international business, not a national one. We are already behind the EU in terms of access to medicines, the risk now is that this could get worse, not better.”

Datatrial develop software to improve the clinical research process and recently launched software ‘Nucleus’ in the US and Europe - the company’s first new product launch in 9 years following on from its leading clinical trial software nowEDC.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Callaghan Marketing .