ABPI makes new clinical trial data transparency pledge

The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has outlined the fresh efforts it will be making to ensure clinical trial data is made more readily accessible.

In order to better monitor compliance to the clinical trial transparency provisions contained in the ABPI's code of practice, the organisation will be appointing an independent third party service provider to take on this function.

Meanwhile, the ABPI itself will take charge of reporting non-compliance with trial registration and posting of summary results to the Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority, while also launching a new toolkit and workshops to provide guidance on this matter.

Stephen Whitehead, chief executive of the ABPI, said: "The pharmaceutical industry has always accepted that making data more transparent is important, but all parties must now decide together how exactly this is achieved."

This comes in response to growing pressure on the pharmaceutical industry to be more open in sharing clinical trial data, led by academic and writer Dr Ben Goldacre, with whom Mr Whitehead recently debated on this matter at a special PharmaTimes event in London.