New scheme could put Europe at forefront of global pharma r&d

A new Euro 2bn initiative could help Europe overtake the US in the field of r&d and put the continent back in the forefront of innovative medical research, the European Commission hopes.

Announced last May, the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) brings together the public and private sectors to accelerate the development of new medicines in Europe with a special emphasis on involving small and medium-sized pharma companies, universities and research centres.

Under the initiative, partnerships will be formed between university institutions, SMEs, pharmaceutical groups, regulatory authorities and patient associations, and each public-private partnership will be able to propose research projects and apply for IMI funds.

The IMI does not aim to develop new medicines directly, but rather to promote new tools and technologies that will improve and accelerate the development of new therapies.

The funding is to be split evenly between the European Union and the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA), with the EU injecting cash and big pharmaceutical companies donating €1bn worth of researchers, equipment and laboratories.

Brian Ager, EFPIA director general, said he expected the scheme to lead to "better research and development in the sector, as well as provide more medicines and do it faster".

"We are planning on getting the IMI underway in early 2008 and the funding is for a period of six years," he added. "And we especially want to reduce the brain drain so Europe can become attractive again for young researchers."

Octavi Quintana, the European Commission's director of health research is predicting a long and difficult road, but believes that within several years Europe will once again be the leader in pharmaceutical r&d.

He said the initiative was to "boost know-how and expertise over the medium and short term".

"In recent years only three out of every 10 important new medicines have been developed in Europe but seven in the US. We want to reverse that figure," he said, adding that one of the obstacles for Europe is that the US has a stronger tradition of private funding for r&d.

According to Quintana, the IMI has the full support of the EU and the EU member states. "The final goal is to improve the quality of life for patients," he stressed.