Europe's 'FDA' in limbo as hidden costs of Brexit continue to mount

London

WHEN it switched offices in London not long ago, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) signed a 25-year lease on a shiny new building in the east of the city.

Just two years later, the organisation is preparing to relocate again, but this time its likely move has sent tremors through Britain's pharmaceutical industry and raised fears over public safety.

The uncertain fate of the EMA, which like the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversees the approval of drugs for use across Europe, follows Britain's vote in June to leave the European Union (EU).

That surprise decision means the organisation, an EU agency, will almost certainly have to leave Brit…