Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of additional market incentive options to encourage industry and others to fund research and trials for new antibiotics, including those used to treat chronic lung infections in people with cystic fibrosis.

In July 2019, a pilot was launched to develop and test a ‘subscription-style’ evaluation and payment model for antibiotics in England, which would pay pharmaceutical companies for access to antibiotics based on the value to the National Health Service, rather than the volume used. This model aims to incentivise pharmaceutical companies to develop new, novel antimicrobials which can be used appropriately, including those to treat chronic lung disease in people with cystic fibrosis.

Payments from NHS England to two pharmaceutical companies involved in the pilot commenced on 1 July 2022. Officials are considering how the new frameworks for the evaluation and payment of new antimicrobials can be developed, including through consultation with domestic and international stakeholders. The consultation process will continue until spring 2023.

Findings from the pilot have been shared online via the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and at international conferences. The Government has also advocated for such models internationally, including during the United Kingdom’s G7 Presidency in 2021, to jointly explore incentives to bring new antimicrobials to market.