Airbus considers moving business from Britain over Brexit fears
European aerospace company Airbus could pull investment out of the UK after losing patience with the government’s stalled Brexit negotiations.
The company is preparing to abandon plans to build aircraft wings at its British plants and move production to China, the US or elsewhere in Europe.
“In the absence of any clarity, we have to assume the worst-case scenario,” Tom Williams, the chief operating officer of Airbus, told The Times. “It is the dawning realisation that we now have to get on with it.”
Airbus employs 14,000 people in the UK, and the move could be a huge blow to the country if the company decides to relocate.
A similar situation happened with the European Medicines Agency, which is departing London for Amsterdam after a relocation vote from the European Council.
Read more from The Times here
Senior officials should be held accountable over Gosport deaths
Hospital officials who rejected questions regarding the deaths of 456 patients should face criminal prosecution, according to a patient safety charity.
An investigation into the Gosport War Memorial hospital found that nearly 500 patients had their lives cut short due to unnecessary prescriptions of opioid drugs, such as diamorphine.
Former bishop of Liverpool James Jones, who sat with a panel of experts, said that those involved in the wrongdoings were aware of what was happening.
Health secretary Jeremy Hunt said hundreds of lives could have been saved it people came forward and apologised to the families that were affected.
Read more here
Hammond: Taxes will rise to pay for NHS boost
Chancellor Philip Hammond is set to declare that taxes will increase to cover additional NHS spending.
Following his speech yesterday, Hammond said the “nation’s taxpayers will have to contribute a bit more in a fair and balanced way to support the NHS we all use”.
The speech however mentioned no use of the so-called Brexit dividend, which the prime minister claimed would pay for part of the boosted spending on the country’s healthcare service.
Shadow chancellor John McDonnell told the BBC that its “scandalous that the chancellor is still planning to go ahead with billions of pounds in tax giveaways to big businesses and a wealth few over this parliament, but now suggests he will raise taxes on low and middle earners at the same time to pay for the Tory made crisis in our health and social care system.”
Read more from the BBC here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-44555400
NICE says yes to Sanofi’s Dupixent
England’s cost effectiveness watchdog NICE has recommended Sanofi’s eczema treatment Dupixent.
It issued a positive Final Appraisal Determination (FAD) recommending Dupixent (dupilumab) in combination with topical corticosteroids, for routine use on the NHS in England for moderate to severe atopic dermatitis in adults when they have not responded to at least one other systemic therapy (e.g. immunosuppressants) or these are contraindicated or not tolerated.
“This decision is a great step forward for patients with moderate to severe atopic dermatitis, who will now be one step closer to accessing dupilumab through the NHS in England,” commented Andrew Proctor, Chief Executive at the National Eczema Society (NES). “Dupilumab represents a new way of treating atopic dermatitis and we are delighted that NICE has recognised the huge challenges that some patients face in successfully managing their condition. The decision gives real hope to people who desperately need more effective treatment.”
The drug gained a Promising Innovative Medicine designation from the UK’s regulator the MHRA, an early access scheme which operated before it gained EU marketing approval. One special provision in the scheme means England’s NHS is obliged to provide funding within 30 days of NICE guidance, instead of the usual 90 days.