An article published in Politico on 11 May 2016, has drawn attention to the fact that should the UK leave the EU, agencies currently based in London, would need to be relocated.
The European Commission has decentralised agencies all over Europe, including two agencies currently based in London: namely the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the European Bank Authority (EBA).
Fernand Sauer (first EMA director and involved in the legislation that created the agency) notes that there exists no formal process for locating EU agencies. This means that decisions rely on member countries. Although national health ministries now hope there will be no need to relocate the EMA and say no official moves would be made until after the British referendum on 23 June, trade associations are already lobbying to host the EMA. The article gives arguments of Swedish, Italian, Danish and French national pharma organisations to attract the EMA to their country.
The article added an interesting if odd consequence of the possibility of a Brexit.
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