AstraZeneca Pauses £200m Cambridge Expansion Amid UK Pharma Setbacks

AstraZeneca has halted a £200m expansion of its Cambridge research site, stalling its entire £650m UK investment plan.
The Cambridge project, expected to create 1,000 jobs, joins the scrapped £450m vaccine facility in Merseyside.
An AstraZeneca spokesperson confirmed the pause, citing ongoing reassessment of investment needs, with no further comment.
Meanwhile, the company plans $50bn in US investments by 2030, including drug manufacturing and lab expansions across six states.
The move follows a week of negative news for UK pharma, including Merck scrapping a £1bn London research centre.
Sir John Bell warned major pharmaceutical firms are pausing UK investments due to regulatory and market concerns.
Sanofi called for a “proper plan” from the Treasury to make the UK life sciences environment competitive again.
Eli Lilly also put its £279m London lab project on hold, raising concerns about UK research prospects.
Industry groups demand NHS pricing reforms, seeking a reduction of the clawback rate from 23% to levels seen in Europe.