The government is aiming for a significant expansion of clinical trials in the UK, and plans to use the NHS app to encourage millions of people in England to take part in the search for new treatments.
Patients will eventually be automatically matched with studies based on their health data and interests, via the app. The plans envisage alerting them to the trials using smartphone notifications.
NHS trusts that fail to meet targets on trials will also be publicly named, and the best performers will be prioritised for funding, as part of improvements designed to restore Britain’s global reputation for medical research.
The strategy is one of the first to emerge from the government’s forthcoming 10-year health plan for England. It aims to take advantage of changes simplifying NHS records by quickly identifying people suitable for a trial. It will also include measures to streamline the paperwork required for the studies.
It is hoped the reforms will speed up the trials process and attract more pharmaceutical companies to host them in Britain, as ministers in all departments are ordered to find pro-growth measures.
The 10-year health plan will promise to slash set-up times for trials. While it takes about 100 days to set up a trial in Spain, it now takes 250 days in the NHS. The plan will push for commercial clinical trial set-up times to fall to a maximum of 150 days by March 2026.
Source: The Guardian, 16 June 2025
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