Health Secretary’s Plan Fails to Halt Pharma Investment Freeze

Despite initial optimism surrounding the health secretary’s three-point plan, it has failed to halt a deep freeze in pharmaceutical investment in the UK. Major companies that were once “heartened” by the proposals are now pausing or canceling projects, demanding more than just plans on paper.
Sanofi provides a clear case study. Six months ago, the French firm was actively exploring an expansion of its UK clinical trials based on the government’s positive rhetoric. Today, all significant investment is on hold, with the company waiting for “tangible progress” before it will commit any further capital.
This sentiment is widespread. The government’s plans have not been enough to prevent MSD from abandoning its £1bn London research facility or to convince Eli Lilly to proceed with its new lab. The industry is signaling that the underlying commercial problems—low spending, outdated pricing, and high clawbacks—remain unresolved.
The failure of the initial plan to reassure investors has now forced the government back to the drawing board. With drugmakers having rejected a recent ultimatum on pricing, ministers must now come up with a more substantial and credible offer to thaw the investment freeze and save the UK’s life sciences ambitions from collapse.