Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the findings of the report by The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry False economy? How NHS medicine procurement threatens the UK’s Life Sciences growth engine, published on 23 February, that the continued current high rebate rates under the voluntary and statutory schemes for branded medicines during the next five years would mean foregoing £50 billion in GDP and £17.9 billion in tax revenues as a result of lost research and development investment; and what are their estimates of the value of the potential lost investment in this sector.

The Department carefully considers all evidence in the public domain on matters relating to the growth and competitiveness of the United Kingdom’s life science sector, including the recent report by the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry. This occurs in combination with broad engagement with individual companies, the National Health Service and with charities and patient representatives and will continue moving forward as part of the delivery of the Government’s Life Science Vision.