AstraZeneca says introduction of a biodiversity drugs levy could cost jobs in the UK | AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca has said it could cut jobs at its UK operations if the government implements a global push to force companies to share profits derived from natural genetic code, multiple sources told the Guardian.

The company's comments come amid a concerted lobbying effort by the pharmaceutical industry against profit-sharing measures.

The British-Swedish biotech company, which posted revenue of ₹5.96 billion ($4.59 billion) last year, made the comments at a roundtable at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs last week, according to sources. Biodiversity in digital form. A spokesperson for AstraZeneca denied the comments were made by its representative.

Nature's genetic code, known as digital sequence information (DSI) when stored digitally, is playing an increasing role in drug discovery for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.

But there is widespread anger among biodiversity countries about the way multinational companies use DSI to develop commercial products, almost always for free. Most of the world's remaining biodiversity is concentrated in poor countries. They argue that free use of this genetic information constitutes biopiracy, and that companies should share in the profits when native species are used to develop commercial products.

Global leaders have already agreed on the principle that these benefits should be shared more fairly. They are currently meeting at Biodiversity Cop16 in Cali, Colombia, to negotiate what form that sharing should take.

Ideas being considered include a 1% global tax on DSI-derived commodity profits, which could cost the Cambridge-based company up to $60 million if implemented by the UK government. [that figure represents an estimated maximum, as not all of the firms profit would be derived from DSI].

The profit-sharing proposal has drawn significant backlash from pharmaceutical companies. In March, AstraZeneca announced a $650 million investment in its UK operations, including $450 million in a vaccine research and manufacturing facility in Liverpool. But company representatives said jobs in north-west England could be affected by the levy, according to sources present at last week's meeting.

Quick GuideWhat is digital sequence information and why are there disputes between countries?View

What is DSI?

Samples of natural organisms have been collected for scientific research for a long time. Now their genetic code is often the most useful to researchers. This information is mostly exchanged online through huge databases that store digitized versions of genetic code. This is known as Digital Sequence Information (DSI).

Why is it worth it?

Many important scientific discoveries, including treatments for diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and cancer, have come from natural genetics. For example, a reaction to enhance COVID-19 testing was developed using heat-resistant bacteria from Yellowstone geysers. Because much of this genetic information is digitized, it is used by scientists, companies and huge AI models searching for potential drug discoveries, proteins and substances that could one day be worth billions of dollars.

What is conflict?

Much of the undiscovered biodiversity that could generate new discoveries is in poor countries, such as the vast rainforests of the Congo Basin. Many of these countries oppose companies and researchers using their country's biodiversity without paying them. They call it biopiracy. At the Cop16 UN Biodiversity Summit in October 2024, world leaders are attempting to negotiate an agreement on sharing resources from DSI.

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Without a global agreement on how to share revenues from DSI-based discoveries, some countries may threaten to restrict access to biodiversity, potentially dealing a major blow to commercial and scientific research. The Global Fund's proceeds go towards protecting nature around the world in an effort to prevent the continued destruction of ecosystems.

Eva Zabey, CEO of Business for Nature, said it was essential to make progress on DSI in the Cop16 negotiations.

Nature underpins every aspect of our economy. The benefits of natural resources, including digital sequencing, must be valued and shared fairly. Businesses are responsible for contributing financially and non-financially to the use of these resources, she said.

Although the DSI levy is voluntary, governments are free to implement mandatory national measures, an approach the UK government is considering.

At a Defra meeting on 15 October, pharmaceutical industry representatives expressed strong opposition to the idea, saying a mandatory levy would damage competitiveness with countries such as the United States, which is not a signatory to the UN biodiversity process and has not introduced a levy. .

As part of the Barcode Galapagos Project, scientists collect plant samples from the Galapagos Islands to extract DNA. Genetic code is often used for free by pharmaceutical companies to design new drugs. Photo: Dolores Ochoa/AP

Richard Torbett, chairman of the British Pharmaceutical Industry Association, who attended the Defra conference, said imposing a mandatory levy on UK-based companies was mistargeted and a harmful response to a significant global challenge.

This would hinder the use of this important data and hinder UK research efforts that are vital to public health issues, he said.

Any multilateral benefit-sharing mechanism should promote conservation goals along with scientific innovation and economic growth. Cop16's proposals for a mandatory levy do not achieve this.

This will have a direct impact on innovation, investment and growth in the UK, made worse by the fact that major countries such as the US will not impose a levy, which will actively disadvantage the UK in attracting cutting-edge medical research, he said. .

The International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA) has serious concerns about the proposed global DSI tax ahead of the Cali negotiations, which it said could further complicate the study.

Steve Bates, chairman of the UK Bioindustry Association, said: Any rules or levies coming from this summit will impose barriers to innovation and business growth. We have already discussed this with the British Government delegation to Colombia.

Cop16's international DSI negotiations are expected to conclude next Friday.

An AstraZeneca spokeswoman said other industry representatives attending the October 15 meeting may have commented on the impact on the company.

We can confirm that no AstraZeneca representative has threatened to relocate operations or lay off employees. They said that as a company we are following the position set out by the IFPMA, which can be found here.

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