Ministers call for post-Brexit cooperation on drug regulation

The UK wants to maintain cooperation with the European Union on drug regulation after its departure from the bloc, cabinet ministers Greg Clark and Jeremy Hunt have said.

The business and health secretaries said a deal to maintain such cooperation would be beneficial for all sides.

In a letter written to the Financial Times, Clark and Hunt said that continued investment in the sector was key, and that Britain “would like to find a way to continue to collaborate with the EU, in the interests of public health and safety”.

The European Medicines Agency is currently based in London, regulating pharmaceutical products for the whole of the EU, but that body will move to the continent once the UK formally leaves the EU.

Clark and Hunt said that continued investment in the sector was key

"Our aim is to ensure that patients in the UK and across the EU continue to be able to access the best and most innovative medicines and be assured that their safety is protected through the strongest regulatory framework and sharing of data," the ministers wrote.

Industry experts have warned that the departure of the EMA may lead to the UK having to create its own drug regulation body, something Clark and Hunt were keen to dismiss.

"Drug development is a global business — and we will look to continue to work closely with the European Medicines Agency, and our international partners."