ABPI — UK pharmaceutical investment competitiveness report, September 2026

This report highlights that:

• 98% of trials received regulatory approval within the target timeframe in April 2026

• only 58% opened to recruitment within 60 days of approval

• only 44% recruited their first participant within 30 days of opening

• recruitment to interventional industry trials fell 25% between 2022/23 and 2024/25.

It recognises that the VPAG funded NIHR Commercial Research Delivery Centres (CRDCs) demonstrate enhanced performance.  Whilst the UK may has improved regulatory approval timelines, there is a need to focus on site setup and trial recruitment.

ABPI — UK industry clinical trials: Translating actions into impact, December 2025

This report highlights that while the UK saw a 35.7% increase in commercial clinical trial initiations in 2024 , patient recruitment fell for the fourth consecutive year to its lowest level since 2017/18, hampered by slow trial set-up times and missed recruitment targets. To restore the UK's global competitiveness and maximize patient access to innovative treatments, the report recommends four key actions: 

• setting and meeting more ambitious patient recruitment targets

• accelerating trial set-up times to meet the government's 150-day target

• establishing clear executive-level accountability across the NHS and ICBs

• and, effectively deploying and demonstrating the impact of the £300 million VPAG Investment Programme to resolve critical workforce and infrastructure bottlenecks.