Brexit could hinder access to coronavirus vaccines, says pharma group

The UK’s pharma industry trade body has warned that Brexit could derail the government’s efforts to get coronavirus vaccines to the population, but welcomed other measures in this week’s spending review aimed at reviving the economy after the pandemic.

In the build-up to chancellor Rishi Sunak’s announcement in the House of Commons, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) chief executive Richard Torbett warned that a no-deal Brexit could disrupt supplies of vaccines.

He told Sky News that additional costs, bureaucracy and delays could follow a no-deal Brexit, or an agreement failing to address the complexity of drug regulation.

Brexit talks are on a knife edge as the transition period nears its end and the EU's chief negotiator Michel Barnier has threated to pull out of negotiations in London this weekend unless the UK changes its stance on issues such as fishing and state aid.

Torbett said: "We are as prepared as we can possibly be, but we don't need this extra red tape, extra complexity, extra cost and extra delay getting in the way of our supply chain at a time where we're trying to deal with COVID.

"Clearly this is very frustrating and all of the time and effort and resource that has been put into the multiple levels of scenario planning around Brexit is time and effort and resource that could have been put to other better uses."

The ABPI had better things to say about the spending review, however.

The industry welcomed £3 billion pledged to support the NHS from the impact of COVID-19 and noted a £14.6 billion funding boost to help the UK grow as a leader in science and technology.

Torbett said in a statement: “As the government focuses on its growth agenda, it should look to life sciences and make the most of this funding to unlock the future potential of our sector.

“Policies that encourage investment into cutting-edge research – such as delivering on the vision for UK health data – will deliver a triple win: for jobs, for the economy, and for the UK’s world-beating life sciences sector.”

Sunak also announced £6 billion in funding to pay for coronavirus vaccines, which is part of a package of measures designed to help the country recover from the pandemic worth £55 billion.

“As companies begin to seek approval from the regulator for new COVID-19 vaccines, it’s critical that we get the roll out right. Today’s funding will help them and the NHS plan for this enormous task and work together so that the right logistics are in place,” said Torbett.

The ABPI said it wants further plans including capital grants for medicines manufacturing, enhanced R&D tax credits, investment in preventive healthcare and modernisation of NICE appraisal methods to further stimulate the life sciences sector.