By bizn_fun 
“Where the additional money would come from to pay higher prices is a matter for the department of health and the Treasury to figure out,” he added.
Lord Vallance was speaking at the opening of US vaccine giant Moderna’s new centre in Oxfordshire where millions of flu and Covid jabs will be made.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting, who cut the ribbon at the development project on Wednesday, told the BBC there was “a live conversation between government departments and the pharma industry” on drug pricing.
Lord Vallance added: “We must end up with a deal of some sort… because it’s in the interest of the economy, it’s in the interest of patients.”
According to the government, Moderna is investing more than a £1bn in UK research and development as part of a 10-year partnership to create new treatments jobs and boost pandemic resilience.
Its commitment, made three years ago, stands in contrast to Merck’s decision this month to scrap a £1bn project in Liverpool and AstraZeneca’s pausing of a £200m investment in Cambridge, also this month.
Meanwhile, Novartis said in August that NHS patients will lose access to new cutting-edge treatments because of skyrocketing costs.
It said it was not considering the UK for major new investments in manufacturing, research, or advanced technology because of “systemic barriers”.
Another pharmaceutical firm Eli Lily told the Financial Times, external on Wednesday the UK was “probably the worst country in Europe” for drug prices.
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%.
Elsewhere, Trump has put pressure on pharmaceutical companies to lower prices and invest more in the US.