Unleashing the potential of global Britain for life sciences: Leading innovation, access and uptake

This webinar took place on 25 May 2021. To be notified of future events please register. 

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About this webinar

Join Public Policy Projects (PPP) and IQVIA for the second session in our webinar series ‘Unleashing the potential of global Britain for life sciences’.

The life sciences sector is the most productive and innovative sector in the UK, employing over 250,000 people and generating more than £75 billion for the economy. The Covid-19 pandemic has been a catalyst for hyper-accelerating clinical research through a new spirit of collaboration between government, industry, the NHS and patient organisations – but there remain challenges ahead.

This webinar will address the themes of innovation, access and uptake in the context of the UK leaving the EU and over a year of Covid-19. Before the pandemic, the access environment was not fit for purpose and resulted in inefficiencies which stunted progress. Post pandemic and Brexit, there is an opportunity to explore new processes and regulatory frameworks that allow patients to access innovative treatments and technologies as quickly and safely as possible. The NICE methods review and accelerated access collaborative are building momentum in this endeavor. However, the question remains: What must the UK to ensure it becomes a leader in the global landscape?

Speaker information:

Professor Gillian Leng, Chief Executive, NICE

Gill Leng is the chief executive of NICE. As a junior doctor she was struck by variations in clinical practice and this developed into a passion for using evidence to improve care. Her career has spanned research, evidence synthesis, management and healthcare.

Her aim is to transform the organisation with new methods and processes to put NICE at the forefront of evaluating new medicines, devices and diagnostics, and deliver dynamic, living guidelines.

Gill trained in medicine at Leeds, worked on clinical trials and epidemiological research in Edinburgh, and was a public health consultant in London. She was an editor of the Cochrane Collaboration, and is now chair of the Guidelines International Network.

Matthew Whitty, Chief Executive, Accelerated Access Collaborative

Matt Whitty is the Director of Innovation, Research and Life Sciences and Chief Executive of the Accelerated Access Collaborative. He is a trained Pharmacist and has worked in a variety of clinical roles and as a management consultant before joining NHS England and Improvement.

Julia Dudley, Deputy Director, Innovation and Growth, Office for Life Sciences, DHSC/BEIS

Julia has worked in a range of roles in the Civil Service, both in the Cabinet Office and Department of Health and Social Care. Beginning of 2020, Julia took over as the Deputy Director for Innovation and Growth in the Office for Life Sciences, a joint unit between the Department of Health and Social care and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

Prior to this, she was Deputy Principal Private Secretary to the current and former Health Secretaries where she had responsibility for oversight of a range of health policy areas including Brexit and NHS winter planning. Julia also has a PhD in pre-clinical neuroscience.

David Peacock, Vice President and Managing Director UK&I, MSD

David Peacock is currently serving as the managing director for MSD in the United Kingdom and Ireland having taken up his position in 2019. Prior to his current appointment David served as the Chief of Staff for the Office of the Chairman, President and CEO where he worked closely with the Merck Executive Committee to coordinate and oversee enterprise-wide initiatives and ensured continued focus and progress on the company’s key strategic priorities.

Over the course of his career with MSD David has gained a broad set of leadership experiences including serving as the Chief Financial Officer for MSK K.K. in Japan, leading the company’s business in Hong Kong & Macau, and successfully delivering in a variety of other commercial roles based in Japan, Vietnam, Singapore, and the United States.