Ireland Makes Its Case to Be New Home for the EMA Following Brexit
September 23, 2016
By Alex Keown, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff
DUBLIN – As the world waits for Britain to trigger Article 50, its intention to leave the European Union, European leaders are already working behind the scenes to lure the London-based European Medicines Agency (EMA) within their borders. One country taking an early initiative is Ireland.
Oliver O’Connor, chief executive officer of Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association, recently spoke exclusively with BioSpace from his office in Ireland about why Ireland would be an ideal new home for the EMA. For starters, O’Connor said leadership in Ireland is establishing a working group to showcase the best of Ireland and its thriving pharma industry. Britain has not yet triggered its two-year plan to withdraw from the EU, so O’Connor said there is no telling when a formal presentation to the EMA will take place.
“No one knows when the actual race starts. We will have to wait until Britain begins its exit, which then triggers a two-year clock for the EMA to move,” O’Connor said.
Britain held a referendum vote in June on whether or not it should exit the European Union and a slight majority of British voters, 53 percent, favored departing the EU. The referendum is not binding, but British officials, including new Prime Minister Theresa May, vowed to respect the vote and follow through with the exit.
Once Britain triggers Article 50, the clock will begin to countdown for the EMA’s exit and then countries such as Ireland, Sweden, Germany and Denmark are likely to commence a full-court press of lobbying to woo the regulatory agency that employs about 850 people. Legally, the EMA cannot remain in London with that country exiting the EU, O’Connor said. But when Article 50 is triggered remains anyone’s guess. O’Connor said some believe Britain is waiting for the German election, which could be held anytime between August and October 2017.
One of the key points that O’Connor and the Irish government will make is that by moving the EMA to Dublin, it will ensure business continuity. O’Connor said there’s an “intense connection” between Dublin and London and is well travelled by tourists and businesspeople alike. That ease of travel will be a key as the EMA determines the logistics of not only the move of its operations, but also of the families of its employees. Because London and Dublin are so close in physical proximity, O’Connor said EMA employees could easily live in London and commute to Dublin. “Everyone is waiting for them trigger Article 50,” O’Connor said.
“It’s easy to live in one city and work in another,” he said. “Moving to another one of the capitals would require more disruption to staff and have a negative impact on families. It’s certainly a factor in any transition that you want business continuity.”
That kind of continuity is something that the Irish hopefuls are counting on. O’Connor said the EMA wants to ensure that business continues as smoothly as possible, even when the organization will be forced to move its operations out of London. He said EMA officials, as well as pharma industry leaders, do not want any kind of slowdown in the approval of new medications while the EMA is in transition. O’Connor said that’s something the EMA will have to take into consideration when its organizational leaders make a decision, although he added he’s sure such a transition will be “well managed.”
Additionally, O’Connor said Ireland has a strong set of skilled and educated people to support any kind of move. With a plethora of life sciences companies already making their homes in Ireland, or establishing corporate headquarters here, O’Connor said there are already strong relationships with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
“Ireland will also be the only English speaking country in the Eurozone with Britain’s exit,” O’Connor said. “That’s another thing that’s good for continuity because the EMA has gotten used to the use of English. Our principle advantages are connectivity and continuity.”
If the EMA does move to Ireland, O’Connor said he is not sure what space is available for the regulatory agency, but he said it’s too early to speculate on any real estate issues at this point.
As the country waits for the lobbying start to be approved, O’Connor said Ireland will continue to build its science sector and support academic programs in the sciences.
“We’re going to continue to develop the infrastructure and show the best of Ireland,” O’Connor said.
The country has also been focused on the Biopharma Ambition Conference, which concluded on Sept. 22. The event, which was supported by the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association and BioPharmaChem Ireland, was held to inspire and showcase innovation and how Ireland will support innovation in discovery, development, manufacturing and healthcare solutions.