As a consequence of the decision of the United Kingdom to go its separate way, the remaining European Union member states decided yesterday that the European Medicines Agency should move to Amsterdam by the end of March 2019.

In a press release yesterday, the EMA’s Executive Director Guido Rasi said, “Amsterdam ticks many of our boxes … it offers excellent connectivity and a building that can be shaped according to our needs.”

Amsterdam was one of 19 offers to host EMA submitted by EU members at the end of July 2017, the release said. Among unsuccessful candidates were Athens (Greece), Barcelona (Spain), Brussels (Belgium), Dublin (Ireland), Milan (Italy), and Copenhagen (Denmark).

EMA’s internal surveys have shown that a large majority of EMA staff would be willing to move to Amsterdam, according to the release, still warning that the EMA’s activities ” will be impacted and we need to plan for this now to avoid the creation of gaps in knowledge and expertise.”

A previous EMA release stated the necessity for the host country to provide schooling for 600 children, taking into account linguistic and other needs, and affordable, good quality housing for up to 900 new households. The EMA has been based in London since its establishment in 1995, and currently employs some 900 staff members.

A joint governance structure is due to be established with EMA and the Netherlands to steer and oversee the relocation project, and in early December, the EMA will make available a monitoring chart on its website to track the progress made, said the release.