Prime Highlights
- GSK CEO Dame Emma Walmsley confirms $30 billion investment in the United States by 2030, reinforcing the US as the world’s strongest market for new medicines and vaccines.
- Despite global challenges, GSK says the UK remains an important hub for research, innovation, and manufacturing, supported by a new zero-tariff deal for UK-made pharmaceuticals shipped to the US.
Key Facts
- The US generates over 50% of GSK’s total revenue, while the UK accounts for just 2%, prompting the company’s strategic expansion across the Atlantic.
- Britain’s new agreement to keep US import tariffs on UK medicines at zero for three yearsis expected to support drug innovation and improve NHS access to new treatments.
Background:
The head of British pharmaceutical giant GSK, Dame Emma Walmsley, has said the United States remains the most attractive market for investment, despite years of the UK government promoting Britain as a global life sciences leader. She confirmed the company plans to channel $30 billion into its US operations by 2030, citing the country’s strong launch environment for new medicines and vaccines.
Walmsley noted that while the UK positions itself as a life sciences “superpower,” it cannot match the scale or commercial pull of the American market. The US currently accounts for more than half of GSK’s total revenue, while the UK represents just 2%. “The US is still the world’s leading market for drug launches and business development,” she said.
GSK’s investment drive comes as several major drug makers have scaled back or abandoned UK projects. Merck (MSD in Europe) cancelled plans for a £1 billion expansion, and AstraZeneca has paused a £200 million research investment in Cambridge while accelerating spending in the United States. Other pharmaceutical firms have echoed concerns about the UK’s commercial environment, citing restrained NHS drug budgets and slow uptake of new treatments.
Despite this, Walmsley stressed that GSK remains committed to Britain, pointing to the company’s newly opened global headquarters in London. She said the UK may never be a large domestic market but still has the potential to be “an exporter of innovation.”
The GSK chief welcomed a new agreement that removes US import taxes on UK-made medicines for three years. The arrangement requires the NHS to spend more on pharmaceuticals, but Walmsley said the shift marks a “step in the right direction” after a long decline in the proportion of the NHS budget dedicated to medicines.
On the future of drug discovery, Walmsley predicted major breakthroughs driven by advances in artificial intelligence. With most pharmaceutical projects failing and costing billions, she said doubling current success rates would “completely change the trajectory of innovation.”
Despite the pressure facing the industry, she stressed that few sectors carry as much importance. “Health is something every person, everywhere, ultimately cares about,” she said.
