Industry Continues to Invest Significantly in UK R&D

New figures published by the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) on June 28, 2019 have revealed the continuation of significant investment by the pharmaceutical industry into R&D in the United Kingdom.

The data, published on Disclosure UK, have shown an increase in spending related to R&D activities in the UK over the course of 2018, reaching £377.3 million (US$476 million) during the 12-month period compared with $307.9 million (US$388 million) in 2017. Additionally, there was a rise in the number of healthcare professionals agreeing to publish details about non-R&D work with pharma companies in 2018 compared with 2017.

“We can’t discover new medicines without the expertise of research bodies, doctors, and nurses. It’s vital that companies can collaborate with those people and that we’re open and transparent about any payments we make to them. The continued investment from companies is excellent news at a time of economic uncertainty and signals the strength of the sector in the UK,” said Mike Thompson, chief executive of ABPI, in a press release. “Everybody working with the pharmaceutical industry should publish the details of their work so that the public can be confident about those relationships and understand the importance of this collaboration towards improved healthcare. We’re moving in the right direction but there’s clearly much more to be done to convince doctors of the importance of being more open about the money they receive.”

Source: ABPI