GlaxoSmithKline plc investigation
27 May 2014
The Director of the SFO has opened a criminal investigation into the commercial practices of GlaxoSmithKline plc and its subsidiaries.
Whistleblowers are valuable sources of information to the SFO in its cases. We welcome approaches from anyone with inside information on all our cases including this one - we can be contacted through our secure and confidential reporting channel, which can be accessed via the SFO website.
Notes to editors:
The SFO's secure reporting channel can be accessed here: https://report.sfo.gov.uk/sfo-confidential---provide-information-in-confidence.aspx or via our website home page, www.sfo.gov.uk
The Serious Fraud Office is an independent government department responsible for investigating and prosecuting serious and complex fraud, bribery and corruption. It is headed by the Director, David Green CB QC, who exercises powers under the superintendence of the Attorney General. These powers are derived from the Criminal Justice Act 1987.
The SFO Press Office can be contacted on press.office@sfo.gsi.gov.uk or 020 7239 7316 / 7004 (out of hours: +44 (0) 7557 009 842)
[Source]
I actually went out and purchased a bottle of wine last night on the strength of this latest news.
The SFO may want to investigate the British drug regulator, The MHRA, too. It was they who, after a four-year investigation of GlaxoSmithKline, decided to let Glaxo off with a warning letter. No criminal charges were brought against GSK...even after the MHRA learned during their investigation that GSK had knowingly withheld safety data regarding children taking the antidepressant Seroxat [Known as Paxil in the US]
The MHRA's four year investigation into GlaxoSmithKline failed on a catastrophic level.
Alistair Benbow, who was then Head of European Psychiatry at GSK, claimed on National TV that Seroxat could be safe in children even though his company did not have a licence to recommend it to children. [1]
All the SFO need to do is request disclosure from GSK. Emails, documents and, more importantly, the notes taken by GSK's pharmaceutical reps during their visits to doctors and psychiatrists. Did Glaxo's UK reps offer the same incentives to British doctors as GSK's American, Chinese, Polish and Iraqi reps did?
Once they have these in their possession then I'm sure they will be able to retrace who said what and who they said it to.
It is imperative that the SFO obtain these documents.
The MHRA should have requested the same documents but why would they? They rely on pharmaceutical money, in fact, they are fully funded by the pharmaceutical industry.
The SFO are calling on whistleblowers - good luck. The carrot being dangled isn't really as attractive as the carrot dangled in front of whistleblowers in the US.
I suspect the SFO are merely following up on the alleged bribery in China - they need to do more than follow-up though.
GlaxoSmithKline is infested, it's driven by a culture where sales mean everything.
I do hope the SFO turn over every item they come across, I do hope this is not just them following up on GSK's foreign violations.
There are plenty of experts out there who could help the SFO's investigation, whether they choose to use them is another matter.
No stone unturned is the order of the day here. The SFO will, no doubt, face tough opposition from the current UK government. Deals may be struck given that Glaxo's chairman, Andrew Witty, and the current Prime Minister, David Cameron, are friends and business acquaintances. [2]
One thing is certain though. The eyes of the world are watching.
Bob Fiddaman
[1] Seroxat - The Liars? [Video]
[2] Cronyism, Chinese Style
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