BANGEMANN LAUDS EMEA AND OTHER EU MOVES

The appointment of Fernand Sauer (who has been head of the European Union's III.C/3 division - Pharmaceuticals) as executive director of the European Medicines Evaluation Agency can be interpreted as a reward for the European Commission "for the excellent job carried out in the past intense years of creating a single market for pharmaceuticals," Martin Bangemann, vice president of the Commission, told the 30th annual meeting of the European Proprietary Medicines Manufacturers' Association (AESGP) in London this month.

However, he said, it is the fate of politicians not to have time to contemplate the success achieved, but always to look ahead. The first step ahead is for the EMEA to be made operational. And the second step, he pointed out, is that with the European pharmaceutical industry facing stiffening worldwide competition, there is an urgent need to reinforce its competitiveness, and the Commission is doing its best to help the industry remain competitive.

The third step relates to the fact that governments and other health care providers are under great pressure to contain the increase in health budgets, and it is in the industry's interest to put forward ideas on how to make these systems more efficient, said Dr Bangemann.