Latest news with #SirPascalSoriot
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Fight to keep AstraZeneca British: Labour is failing miserably to back a vital industry, says ALEX BRUMMER
Reviving UK share investment is among the most pressing challenges facing Britain. All being well Rachel Reeves plans to raise the issue in her Mansion House speech later this month. There is plenty for the Chancellor to get her teeth into. The London stock market is under siege. The sad sight of the directors of instrument maker Spectris selling out to KKR for £4.1billion should be an alarm signal. Most chilling is the prospect of Britain's largest listed company, AstraZeneca, moving its share quote to New York. The Government's first priority, as it seeks to calm nervy markets after the welfare reform fiasco, should be to prevent such a catastrophe for UK plc. It is unlikely that Astra has immediate plans to go. But in his darkest moments chief executive Sir Pascal Soriot flirts with the idea as its focus has shifted from Britain to investment in the US and China. In weighing the matter one should never, however, underestimate the depth of its European roots in Britain and Sweden. It is this rich research heritage which protected it from disappearing into the hands of American competitor Pfizer in 2014. The departure of the FTSE 100's most valuable constituent and a company in one of the Government's earmarked growth sectors would be a disaster for the London Stock Exchange, the City, advisory groups and UK life sciences. If the share quotation goes, so would command and control, brain power, and some research and development. Labour needs to understand how alienated big pharma has become. Keir Starmer's refusal to back a vaccine plant in Speke, outside Liverpool, was a diabolical error for a Government needing growth industries. Instead, it prefers to pile cash into decarbonising steel production. The vaccine facility may be water under the bridge. What sticks in the craw is the failure of Health Secretary Wes Streeting, so far, to deliver on pledges to the drugs industry before and after the election. Britain is brilliant at developing new medicines and the surge in Astra's valuation over the last decade has been driven by its breakthrough remedies for immunology compounds to treat cancers. As a beneficiary of oncology advances, I have reason to be eternally thankful. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, which stepped up its game during the pandemic, has proved effective at offering fast-track approvals. It is an improvement on the European Medicines Agency which moved from Canary Wharf to the Hague after Brexit. The UK blockages come at Nice, the agency which does cost benefit analysis for new drugs and devices. Its hesitancy and flawed analysis have undermined the NHS as a great testbed for new drugs which could be great income-spinners for the UK. There was, quite frankly, anger when the Government's recent industrial strategy emerged and the promised life sciences review failed to appear. The industry also has been alienated by a deal under which the rebate to the Government on drug sales was arbitrarily raised to 22.9 per cent from 15 per cent. In effect, it represents a stealth tax on the UK's leading-edge pharma and bioscience companies. As a source pointed out, the cure for ballooning welfare bills – a consequence of the 700,000 people added to benefit rolls since Covid – is better health outcomes. The preventative way of getting people back to work is through vaccines. GSK is a global leader in such cures. Astra is a powerhouse of new medicines. And Smith & Nephew is a leading force in high-tech surgical dressings, sports ailments and body replacement devices. A change of language is required. 'Life sciences' sounds pleasant enough but is too vague and all but meaningless to patients. They need to understand how new pills, drugs, medicines, painkillers and other palliatives can make their lives better and help them avert the grim reaper. Britain has the companies which can do that, and the connection must be made. Labour is failing miserably to back a vital industry. The Prime Minister, Rachel Reeves and Wes Streeting are in danger of betraying a key contributor to the nation's health and welfare.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Astrazeneca chief ‘wants to shift London listing to US'
The boss of Britain's most valuable company, Astrazeneca, has reportedly voiced his preference to move the firm's stock market listing to the United States. Sir Pascal Soriot, who has been at the helm of the pharma juggernaut since 2012, is said to have spoken privately about his desire to abandon the UK listing in favour of the US. It's thought board members, along with the UK government, would be expected to push back against such a move due to the firm's standing in the market. Soriot's wishes, as revealed by The Times, would mark a crushing blow to the London Stock Exchange due to the firm's £160bn market cap – the highest on the market. The FTSE 100 chief has been vocal about Europe falling behind peers US and China on new medicine innovation. Soriot denied a rift with the Labour government earlier this year after abandoning plans for a £450m vaccine factory amid questions over the 'timing and reduction of the final offer' of support from the government. Astrazeneca declined to comment to City AM. The loss of Astrazeneca would raise drastic questions about the stability and health of the London market. In 2024, the LSE suffered its biggest exodus in 15 years as 88 firms ditched or transferred their primary listing. This included Paddy Power owner Flutter and tech darling Darktrace. The woes have continued into 2025 with a combination of takeovers and delistings leading to a struggling market. UK fintech Wise dealt a blow to the London market after transferring its primary listing to the US. Meanwhile, last month three billion-pound swoops resulted in foreign giants snapping up London-listed assets. In a bid to boost investment in UK assets and crowd in further liquidity to maintain listings, London Stock Exchange chief Julia Hoggett has suggested a new 'Tell Sid' advertising campaign. But this has faced criticism from LSEG's former boss Xavier Rolet, who blasted stewards of UK capital markets for focusing on 'gimmicks and quick headline-grabbing fixes' to liquidity levels. Sign in to access your portfolio
Telegraph
3 days ago
- Business
- Telegraph
AstraZeneca ‘may quit London stock market'
AstraZeneca's chief executive has discussed shifting the company's stock market listing to the US in a move that would deal a huge blow to London. Sir Pascal Soriot has reportedly spoken of his desire to move the listing to the US in private meetings and suggested moving AstraZeneca's domicile away from the UK. Shares jumped almost 3pc following the report in The Times, which indicates that investors support the idea. AstraZeneca leaving would be a huge blow to the London Stock Exchange, which has been reeling from a string of departures and a dearth of new listings. It would also be a setback for the Government, which is expected to unveil its long-awaited life sciences sector plan within days. AstraZeneca is the largest listed business in London and Britain's biggest drugmaker, with its headquarters in Cambridge. Sir Pascal has been increasingly critical of red tape in the UK and the charges paid by drugmakers to the NHS. Last year, pharmaceutical companies paid the NHS £3bn under a drug rebate scheme meant to stop the health service's costs spiralling out of control. However, the cost of the scheme to drugmakers has ballooned since the pandemic. Sir Pascal has been among those to criticise the scheme, telling the Government that it should 'continue working on improving the environment to attract investment'. Bitter pill AstraZeneca has snubbed the UK for investment in recent years amid concerns over the operating environment. In 2023, it said it had overlooked Britain for a new $400m (£320m) drug factory because of its 'discouraging' tax regime. Last year, AstraZeneca axed plans for a separate £450m vaccine factory in Liverpool after the Government lowered the financial support available. Speaking in April, Sir Pascal said investment would go towards countries that favour AstraZeneca by buying its cutting-edge medicines. He said: 'Companies will follow where they feel welcome. In our industry, it's a question of where do we think patients will be able to benefit from our products and we invest there.' The prospect of AstraZeneca quitting the London market and shifting its headquarters will pile pressure on ministers to improve the UK for drug companies. Labour is this week expected to outline its strategy to turn Britain into the world's third-largest pharma superpower after the US and China. The strategy has already been hit by setbacks, with ministers last week scrambling to agree a crucial deal on NHS drug charges that was meant to be at the centre of its plan to boost growth. AstraZeneca's exit would also ramp up pressure on the London Stock Exchange, which has been hit by a raft of high-profile exits, including Paddy Power owner Flutter and drugs giant Indivior. Any move by AstraZeneca would require board approval.
Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Times
AstraZeneca CEO wants to move listing to the US
The long-serving chief executive of AstraZeneca, Britain's most valuable public company, would like to move the stock market listing to the United States, according to multiple sources. Sir Pascal Soriot has spoken privately of his preference to move the FTSE 100 company's listing on a number of occasions and has even discussed moving AstraZeneca's domicile, according to a source familiar with his thinking. They added that Soriot, 66, was likely to face resistance from parts of the board should he push for such a move, as well as the British government. The government is not believed to have been informed. Soriot, who has led AstraZeneca since 2012, has spoken publicly of his concerns at how Europe has fallen behind the US and China, the company's two largest markets, in innovating new medicines.
