The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry has appointed Dr Richard Torbett as its new chief executive, effective January 1 2020.

He takes over from Mike Thompson, who has held the position since March 2016.

Dr Torbett joined the ABPI in July 2015 and is currently executive director of economic, health and commercial policy with ABPI, a role that saw him take responsiblity for negotiating the 2019 Voluntary Scheme for Medicine Pricing and Access.

He has spent the last 14 years working across a number of senior roles in the pharmaceutical industry, both in the UK and internationally, including as chief economist at the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) and senior director and head of international affairs at Pfizer.

Prior to joining the pharmaceutical industry, Dr Torbett worked as a government economist. He was a senior economist at the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and held a number of posts at DTI, the Cabinet Office and the European Commission.