On 25 May 2023 the chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, announced a package of investment for the UK’s life sciences. As part of this, Lord O’Shaughnessy has published his Independent Review of commercial clinical trials in the UK. The review makes 27 recommendations focused on how the life sciences sector can develop UK health, growth and investment opportunities.
We welcome this review and its recommendations; we also welcome the emphasis on the importance of clinical research in the NHS. Research active healthcare settings and trusts not only have lower mortality rates and better patient outcomes across their services - staff morale is also higher.
In our joint report with the Royal College of Physicians, Personalised Prescribing, we highlight the UK’s success in genomics through private-public sector investment, attracting about £3.3bn. We also argued that continuous clinical research endeavours should be more closely intertwined with healthcare service delivery.
One of the case studies used in the review was that of the RECOVERY trial, co-led by Professor Sir Martin Landrey, clinical pharmacologist and Fellow of the British Pharmacological Society (BPS). The success and speed with which this was able to happen demonstrates the crucial role of clinical trials and the importance of efficiency and agility. Despite this success during the Covid-19 pandemic, the review cites evidence from a major global pharmaceutical company that said of the 18 European countries in which it carries our research, the UK is the second slowest in setting up clinical trials. Aligned with this, recommendation 24 of this review states regulators should produce guidance to support and promote innovative and decentralised trials.
We support the review’s recommendations and regarding recommendation 16: the government and the NHS should work with royal colleges and unions to integrate ‘research conversations’ into all NHS communications and clinical interactions, we argue this should be extended to national academies and relevant learned societies who are experts on clinical research implementation.
The government responded to this review positively, publishing their response which outlines how they will consider the recommendations. As a first step, they have pledged to deliver five upfront commitments, backed by £121 million over 3 years.
Professor Clive Page, President, British Pharmacological Society, said:
Clinical research and its ability to thrive in the life sciences ecosystem is a key focus for the Society. Maintaining and evolving our place on the world stage is of the utmost importance. We need to continue our ability and capacity to design, develop and carry out clinical trials that will deliver life-saving treatments. Clinical pharmacology is the only medical specialty in the NHS focusing on the safe, effective and economic use of medicines. It is a diverse discipline that both sustains and advances best healthcare. The BPS is well-placed to support the government with implementation of these recommendations and our members and Fellows have specific expertise that can support this endeavour.
Further reading and information
Evidence we submitted last year to the Good Clinical Trials Collaborative.
The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has published a helpful blog into patient access to clinical trials.
Book tickets to the World Congress of Basic & Clinical Pharmacology 2023. Professor Sir Martin Landrey will be giving a keynote lecture at the Congress.