Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the ongoing negotiations between the NHS and Vertex pharmaceuticals on the price of cystic fibrosis drug Orkambi, if he will set out the priorities for the UK's delegation to the World Health Assembly, 21-26 May 2019; and if they will support the Italian Government's proposed resolution to improve the transparency of markets for drugs, vaccines and other health-related technologies to strengthen states positions when negotiating drug prices with industry.

The United Kingdom has a long-established and globally-recognised track record of assessing the price of new, innovative medicines by their clinical benefit and value, rather than by their development costs or international reference prices. It is crucial that patients have access to the most effective and innovative medicines at a price that represents value to the National Health Service. The Government fully supports the approach the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and NHS England are adopting in the ongoing negotiations with Vertex Pharmaceuticals on access to their portfolio of cystic fibrosis medicines.

The UK will engage constructively with the talks at the World Health Assembly to achieve the best outcome for people here and globally, including in low and middle income countries. Pricing arrangements are the responsibility of Member States and are highly context specific, but the Department supports information sharing and mutual learning initiatives, where appropriate, in seeking to improve value for money for country procurement budgets.