Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate his Department has made of the number of new clinical trial starts in the UK for Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products within the last 12 months; and whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of measures to incentivise companies to launch new therapies in the UK.

The Government wants NHS patients to benefit from innovative and effective new medicines and accelerated access through clinical research medicine via trials is a major pillar of the Life Sciences Vision. Responsibility for clinical trials sits with DHSC/NIHR but the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has recommended several ATMP that are now routinely funded for NHS patients. Recent initiatives such as the Innovative Licensing and Access Pathway (ILAP) and the Innovative Medicines Fund will further support the rapid introduction of effective new medicines, including ATMP, for the benefit of NHS patients.

Innovate UK and Medical Research Council, as part of UKRI have funded clinical trials in the UK for Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (ATMP). Data is collected on an annual basis and information for 2022 is not yet available. From January 2021 – December 2021 there were 31 new ATMP clinical trial starts in the UK.