Dr Richard Torbett is named as the new Chief Executive of the ABPI

pharmafile | December 2, 2019 | News story | Sales and Marketing British pharmaceuticals, Dr Richard Corbett, apbi, appointments 

The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has appointed Dr Richard Torbett as its new Chief Executive. He will assume the position on 1 January 2020.

The appointment comes after his predecessor, Mike Thompson, stepped down in June. He had served in the role since March 2016. Torbett was unanimously selected by the ABPI board after an external recruitment process with an executive search agency.

In his response to the appointment, Torbett said: “I am proud to work for an industry that has such a profound effect on patients’ lives, and I am hugely excited about taking up the role of Chief Executive of the ABPI.  At this critical time for our country it’s vital that the world-leading UK life sciences industry continues to thrive. I look forward to working with all of our members and partners in government and the NHS to achieve this.”

The President of ABPI, Haseeb Ahmad, said he was “delighted” with Torbett becoming the Chief Executive, adding that they “share an ambition to make the UK the best place in the world to research, develop and use new medicines.”

Torbett has been with the company since July 2015 as the Executive Director of Economic, Health and Commercial Policy. He was responsible for negotiating the 2019 Voluntary Scheme for Medicine Pricing and Access.

Before joining ABPI, Torbett worked across the pharmaceutical industry, both in the UK and abroad. This included working as the Chief Economist at the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) and Senior Director and Head of International Affairs at Pfizer.

Before entering the pharmaceutical industry Richard worked as a government economist, and was a Senior Economist at the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). He also held a number of posts at DTI, Cabinet Office and the European Commission.

Conor Kavanagh

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