AstraZeneca has paused plans to invest £200m at a Cambridge research site in a fresh blow to the UK pharmaceutical industry.
The project, which was set to create 1,000 jobs, was announced in March 2024 by the previous government alongside another project in Liverpool, which was shelved in January.
Friday's announcement comes after US pharmaceutical giant Merck scrapped a £1bn UK expansion, blaming a lack of government investment, and as President Donald Trump pressures pharmaceutical firms to invest more in the US.
An AstraZeneca spokesperson said: "We constantly reassess the investment needs of our company and can confirm our expansion in Cambridge is paused."
Over the last 10 years, UK spending on medicines has fallen from 15% of the NHS budget to 9%, while the rest of the developed world spends between 14% and 20%.
