Steve Turley, Managing Director of Lundbeck, has been re-elected Chair of the European Medicines Group (EMG), the UK voice of pharmaceutical companies based in continental Europe.

Robin Bhattacherjee, General Manager of Actelion, was re-elected vice-Chair of the EMG; and Mike Sumpter, CEO of Servier Laboratories, was elected Treasurer.

Issues highlighted at the EMG’s twelfth AGM included the impact of NHS reform on European-based companies and European perceptions of the UK as a pharmaceutical market and research base.

The EMG’s 15 member companies are Actelion, Almirall, Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Ferring, Lundbeck, Menarini, Merck Serono, Norgine, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, Roche, Sanofi, Servier and UCB.

Steve Turley (pictured) commented: “We have members ranging from the UK’s biggest pharmaceutical companies, through biotechnology specialists to emerging organisations. Yet we all share common challenges and can benefit from being able to view these through a European-focused lens.”

“How the implementation of the NHS reforms affects European-based companies is a key issue this year,” noted Robin Bhattacherjee.

“Upwards of 60% of the medicines our members have introduced in the last decade have not been subject to a NICE health technology appraisal, so... local decision making in the CCGs about the use of these remains a major focus for EMG.”

Mike Sumpter noted: “Globally the UK is viewed as a tough market where innovative new medicines aren’t adopted as readily as similar economies.

“We want to work closely with our NHS stakeholder partners to demonstrate that the UK and the NHS is worth investing in.”

Lundbeck is based in Denmark, Actelion in Switzerland and Servier in France; all three companies have major UK operations.

The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has appointed Dr Neil Weir as the Chair of its Innovation Board.

Dr Weir will lead the Board’s work in developing the ABPI’s long-term vision for pharmaceutical innovation and increased international competitiveness.

He replaces John Stageman, who retired in April.

A leading expert on antibody-based medicine, Dr Weir currently leads UCB’s drug discovery programme. In this role he has led a team responsible for developing 20 new products.

He was formerly Head of Discovery at Celltech R&D.

Stephen Whitehead, ABPI Chief Executive, said: “With Neil’s introduction the ABPI is taking the opportunity to strengthen the link between our Innovation Board and our Board of Management. Supporting and encouraging innovation is the key role of our Innovation Board, but it is also a key consideration for the ABPI as a whole.”

“As the shape of our industry continues to rapidly change our fate lies in the ability to continually innovate,” said Dr Weir. “Our ambition must be to offer innovative new medicines and ground-breaking solutions that go beyond the drug.

“We must remain committed to enabling cutting-edge scientific research that is driven by the patients’ needs, but above all we should continue to focus on our core strength and offering, namely: innovation.”

Lundbeck’s Steve Turley (pictured right) and Actelion’s Robin Bhattacherjee (pictured left) have been appointed as Chair and Vice-Chair of the European Medicines Group (EMG).

Mr Turley, who has been elected for the 2012-2013 term of office, replaces UCB’s Matthew Speers after he stood down following his two year stewardship.

The new Chair said a priority of the Group would be “addressing the challenges faced by medicines” not appraised by NICE or a national commissioning body, which are then “subject to variations in local decision making processes about levels of access”.

Mike Sumpter, CEO of Servier Laboratories, will continue in role as Treasurer of EMG.

The EMG supports research-driven UK pharmaceutical companies globally headquartered on the continent.

Its 16 members represent a broad range of various-sized companies. Member companies currently account for more than a fifth of total medicine sales to the NHS – although the Group is eager to attract other research-driven European pharmaceutical companies.

New Vice-Chair Robin Bhattacherjee commented on the importance of having a “European Voice” here in the UK. “Supply of medicines is one example and how value of medicines could be determined in the UK, and the implications of this on pan-European pricing, will be a key issue over the next couple of years,” he said.

George Scangos, CEO of Biogen Idec, earned $11.3m in 2011 – reflecting the US biotech company’s runaway success.

Partnerships with big pharma companies such as Genentech, UCB and Isis Pharmaceuticals, as well as many smaller biotech firms, have helped Biogen Idec reach an all-time share value peak of $127.57.

Since taking over as CEO in June 2010, Scangos has restructured the company and reduced its R&D costs while realising the commercial potential of biologics such as Tysabri (for MS) and Rituxan (for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma).

Scangos’ $11.3m pay package for 2011 includes $1.2m in salary, a $2.7m bonus and $4.4m from the vesting of stock options.

Other members of Biogen’s executive board were also rewarded: Francesco Granata, former head of commercial operations, earned $624,000 in salary plus a $373,200 bonus; Steven Holtzman, head of corporate development, earned $600,000 and a bonus of $392,040; and Doug Williams, head of R&D, earned $630,000 and a $456,221 bonus.

The world’s oldest biotech company, based in Biogen Idec started as Biogen in 1978 and merged with Idec (which had formed in 1991) in 2003.

UCB will appoint Harriet Edelman and Charles-Antoine Janssen as board members after the departure of four other members.

Gerhard Mayr will succeed existing chair Karel Boone when he steps down from his position, Alexandre Van Damme has announced his retirement and Thomas Leysen and Gaëtan van de Werve have both reached the end of their mandates.

Mr Mayr said the new appointments “both bring unique experience and views to the board” enabling the company to continue as a “patient-centric biopharma leader”.

The new board members will commence their roles at the company’s next general meeting on April 26 2012.

Harriet Edelman joins from Emigrant Bank, where she currently serves as vice chair and holds responsibility for finance operations and IT for New York Private Bank & Trust.

Mr Janssen has joined UCB in 2011 and has held several management positions at global and regional levels.

Roch Doliveux, CEO, thanked the departing board members for their service. He commented: “Karel Boone, Thomas Leysen, Alexandre Van Damme and Gaëtan van de Werve have served very successfully as UCB board members and we would like to thank them for their key contribution and healthy challenges.”

The Chief Executive of biopharmaceutical company UCB, Roch Doliveux, has been appointed the Chairman of the Governing Board of the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI).

Mr Doliveux, who has been involved with the IMI since it was formed and a member of the Governing Board since May 2010, will oversee the Initiative’s projects and €600m budget.

Michel Goldman, Executive Director of IMI, says the group will “greatly benefit” from the appointment of Mr Doliveux.

The IMI is a public-private partnership between the European Union and the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA). It aims to improve the environment for European pharma companies by engaging with industrial and academic experts.

Currently, it funds around 30 projects offering information on drug safety and efficacy, knowledge management, and education and training.

It is the world’s largest public-private partnership in health R&D, funded through a €1bn contribution from the European Union and a further €1bn from member companies of the EFPIA.

“The biopharmaceutical industry has reached an inflection point where public-private partnerships, bringing academic and industry knowledge together, are paving the way to better respond to new healthcare needs and bring safer, more efficacious and cost-effective treatments to patients,” said Mr Doliveux.

“EFPIA considers IMI as a key instrument to implement the new business models which will ensure the sustainability of pharmaceutical industry and increase the wellbeing of patients across Europe.”

Belgian biopharma company UCB has predicted that patent expiry will strongly affect its European growth in 2012.

While UCB’s blockbuster epilepsy drug Keppra faced little generic competition in Europe following its patent expiry in 2011, the company predicts a 50% sales fall for the product in 2012.

However, the company’s CEO said its focus on severe diseases of the immune system and CNS has helped to insulate it against economic austerity.

UCB saw its revenues rise by 1% to €3.25bn in 2011, but predicts a fall of nearly 5% to €3.1bn in 2012.

According to a UCB spokesman, Keppra faces competition from more than 100 generic substitutes in 2012, and its European sales can be expected to fall by 50%.

Delays in the launch of generic alternatives protected Keppra in 2011, when its global sales increased by 3% despite its patent expiry.

UCB’s CEO, Roch Doliveux, said that its commitment to therapy areas such as epilepsy and immunology had shielded the company from the impact of European austerity: “We still have the means in Europe for many years to come to pay for severe healthcare issues, and that’s what we’re addressing.”

Last year, UCB benefited from increased sales of three products: Vimpat for epilepsy, Neupro for Parkinson’s disease and restless legs syndrome, and Cimzia for Crohn’s disease and rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Doliveux also argued that value-based pricing – due to be adopted by the NHS in 2014 – is not a good model to support innovation. He argued that the current PPRS system is “a very robust system that a lot of countries have tried to copy, and PPRS works well.”

Among non-UK companies, UCB is the leading non-British investor in UK pharmaceutical R&D.

The FDA has approved Lupin Pharmaceutical’s generic version of UCB’s Keppra XR tablets for the treatment of epilepsy in patients aged 16.

The levetiracetam drug is indicated for adjunctive therapy to treat partial onset seizures following final approval from the FDA for its abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) to market the treatment option in the US.

The 500mg and 750mg extended release tablets are the AB-rated generic equivalent of Keppra XR.

Lupin Ltd said in a statement that commercial shipments of the product have now commenced.

Keppra’s annual sales were estimated at $161 million for a twelve month period ending in June 2011, based on IMS Health sales data.

The India-based pharmaceutical company produces a range of generic and branded formulation and APIs for distribution worldwide, involving market shares in cardiovasculars, diabetology, asthma, paediatrics and anti-infectives.

  UCB is to build a new manufacturing unit in Switzerland to meet demand for its core product Cimzia (certoluzimab pegol).

The €250m unit will be constructed on their existing Bulle site and should be operational in 2015.

Michele Antonelli, Executive Vice President, UCB, says the new plant, alongside another being constructed in Belgium, will “strengthen our ability to deliver our future biological products”.

Cimzia is used for the treatment of adults with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis and to lessen the signs and symptoms of moderately to severely active Crohn’s disease.

“We want to be able to meet our projected future demand for 2015 and beyond for Cimzia – by adding internal capacity to our existing capacities with our productions partners,” said Michele Antonelli.

“Our site in Bulle is the right place and most cost effective location to build our own biotech manufacturing unit which enables us to further improve our productivity at attractive terms.”

Aesica Pharmaceuticals has acquired three European manufacturing sites from UCB.

The sites in Germany and Italy are Aesica’s first outside the UK .

Dr Robert Hardy, Chief Executive of Aesica, says the acquisitions are “strategically crucial” to establish a presence in Europe.

The expansion follows Aesica’s acquisition of R5 Pharmaceuticals in June 2010 and will complement its existing formulations capability.

“Since Aesica was founded in 2004, we have worked continually to expand and strengthen our offering, supplying our international clients from our manufacturing sites in the UK, while striving to establish a presence in key global markets,” said Dr Hardy.

“To have now secured manufacturing sites in Europe and on such a large scale, is testament to our commitment to ensuring Aesica is recognised as a leading player on the world stage.”

Aesica supplies contract development and contract manufacturing services for Formulated Products and Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients to a host of leading pharmaceutical companies and biotechnology organisations.