‘Red tape’ leaves UK patients at risk of missing out on breakthrough medicines

Patients risk missing out on breakthrough medicines because “red tape” is slowing down UK drug trials compared to the US and Germany, a pharmaceutical boss has warned. In her first interview since taking over as the UK general manager for Eli Lilly, Laura Steele said that despite the “noise and ambition” around speeding up innovative drug trials and approvals, UK patients “face being left behind”. “UK patients face being left behind in the race to approve and secure innovative treatments for some of the biggest health conditions affecting the population today, such as obesity, diabetes and Alzheimer’s.” Her comments come after Lilly, which has been manufacturing medicines in the UK since the 1940s, secured approval for tirzepatide, a landmark weight loss drug for diabetes patients. Asked whether red tape at regulatory bodies was holding the UK back, she said: “Absolutely … If it takes too long, if the processes aren’t smooth enough and it doesn’t make commercial sense, then scientists researching the latest medical breakthroughs will not look to the UK as the best place to base themselves, which ultimately is bad news for patients here.” A Department for Health and Social Care spokesman said efforts to tackle public health challenges facing the UK included “looking at new ways to speed up diagnosis and enhance treatments, delivering on our commitment to launch innovative new healthcare missions”.