The war over drugs: what’s at stake?

Coulter, Steve (2014) The war over drugs: what’s at stake? LSE New European Trade Unions (03 Jun 2014). Website.

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Abstract

The takeover tussle between rival drug giants Pfizer and AstraZeneca has uncovered some interesting truths about government and corporate policies on taxes and R&D funding. Of course, the shadow of Pfizer still looms over UK-based AstraZeneca, with continuing speculation that the US-headquartered Viagra manufacturer will revive its bid later this year. Both firms face imminent ‘patent-cliffs’ as profitable older drugs near the end of their patent protection. Pfizer’s strategy, backed by the Economist, is to acquire new drug products through acquisition. AstraZeneca is a particularly attractive target because the UK’s corporation tax rate is 20% compared to 40% in the US, allowing Pfizer to shift its headquarters to the lower-tax jurisdiction. But some UK politicians worry about job losses among UK research staff if the merger goes ahead – although AstraZeneca’s research activities are already highly de-centralised.

Item Type:	Online resource (Website)
Official URL:	http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/netuf/
Additional Information:	© 2014 The Author(s)
Divisions:	European Institute
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HB Economic Theory H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor J Political Science > JC Political theory J Political Science > JN Political institutions (Europe) Q Science > QR Microbiology > QR180 Immunology Q Science > QR Microbiology > QR355 Virology R Medicine > RM Therapeutics. Pharmacology R Medicine > RS Pharmacy and materia medica
Date Deposited:	01 Jun 2017 14:04
Last Modified:	13 Sep 2024 19:29
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/79581

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