A Crippling Diagnosis: What’s Ailing the UK’s Health Innovation?

A crippling diagnosis has been handed down for the state of the UK’s health innovation ecosystem. The patient, the life sciences sector, is suffering from a severe case of investment flight and a chronic breakdown in its relationship with the government. The prognosis is poor unless a radical new treatment plan is implemented immediately.
The symptoms are impossible to ignore. A major investment from MSD, a £1 billion research center, has been terminated. Eli Lilly has placed its own development lab in indefinite suspension. Furthermore, Sanofi, a global pharma giant, has halved its UK clinical trial activities, a clear sign of a sector-wide malaise.
The underlying disease is a set of deeply entrenched policy issues. The industry has long complained about the UK’s uncompetitive environment, caused by low state spending on new medicines, an antiquated pricing framework, and an aggressive revenue clawback system. A lack of political will to address these ailments has allowed the condition to worsen significantly.
The UK’s strong immune system—its world-class universities and scientific talent—is fighting to keep the patient stable. However, the commercial environment, the very lifeblood of the sector, is failing. The only cure is a swift and decisive intervention from the government to fundamentally reform its approach. Without it, the decline may prove terminal.