Dr. Kieran Harkin:

We would do it at an EU level and even at a global level. There are two issues, one of which is the amount of money we would spend, although we would not be spending any more money than we currently do, given that more than €1 trillion is spent globally on drugs. While we currently spend it at the end of the process, our model would result in the money being spent earlier, leading to far more money and control over the investment.

The other issue is that we need to act in parallel with the industry, which is global. Unfortunately, the global political structures are not as strong as the global pharmaceutical structures and they would need to be developed. While it certainly needs to be done at an EU level, it also probably needs to be done at the level of the United Nations, the World Health Organization and the World Trade Organisation.