UK pharmaceutical company, Accord Healthcare, has secured a USD 63 mn joint investment with the UK government to enhance its Fawdon facility in Newcastle upon Tyne. The funding will introduce new production lines for a novel cancer drug and two autoimmune injectables, creating over 50 skilled jobs and ensuring the plant's long-term viability.

Accord – who are already responsible for supplying approximately 10% of the NHS’ medicines, with 75% manufactured within the UK - will use the funding to help their manufacturing competitiveness with other countries, helping to safeguard UK medicines supply during any future global public healthcare emergencies in the process.

The following article originally appeared in PR Newswire.

Accord Healthcare hosted the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, who launched a new Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund (LSIMF), whilst announcing the unlocking of a joint £50 million investment deal to boost manufacture and production of Accord's high-quality medicines at its plant in Fawdon alongside Peter Kyle, Secretary of State, Department of Science, Innovation and Technology.

Accord has already invested almost £1 billion into the UK in the past 10 years. This joint deal allows the company to invest £50m in new product lines for a novel cancer drug and two autoimmune injectables and the expansion of our medicines for adjunctive therapy in cancer.

Accord is one of the UK's largest providers of medicines to patients and is proud to supply around 10% of the volume of all medicines to the NHS in the UK, around 200m packs a year, 75% of which are made in the UK. This new deal will enable Accord to be even more competitive with other countries in terms of manufacturing, thus helping to safeguard UK medicines supply during any future global public healthcare emergencies.

Welcoming the announcement from Fawdon today, Paul Tredwell, Executive Vice President of Accord Healthcare EMENA said: "Accord is delighted to have worked with the government to unlock this £50 million investment to continue supplying high-quality medicines to the NHS. Today's announcement is positive news for the medicines manufacturing industry across the UK and signals that government is squarely behind this business sector.

"For Accord, it has meant that we have been able to confidently invest in our production facility in Fawdon, Newcastle upon Tyne, where we have been able to significantly increase production of a range of innovative essential medicines for patients across the UK and Europe. This Government investment has allowed us to invest further in our people allowing us to grow our presence in the UK, whilst simultaneously playing a significant part in reducing medicine shortages in the UK and shoring-up our ability to respond well in future public health emergencies."

For more, please find the original story source here.