The British newspaper The Independent reported that the prices of drugs under the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) will rise as UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer moves closer to responding to demands from US President Donald Trump to pay more money to pharmaceutical companies.

This comes as officials briefed the Trump administration earlier this week on new proposals to adjust drug pricing within the NHS, including raising the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) threshold by 25%.

The disclosure represents a government attempt to avoid a wave of new tariffs threatened by Trump due to what he perceives as anti-competitive practices by the UK.

Under current rules, the NICE threshold measures whether a treatment provides good value for money, meaning if a drug costs the NHS between £20,000 and £30,000 per additional quality-adjusted life year it provides to the patient, it is considered good value.

However, under the new proposals presented to the White House, this threshold would be raised, meaning the UK will generally pay more for drugs.

While the Treasury resisted any changes as they would not yield additional benefits, a source stated: “This is the price to be paid post-Trump for global pharmaceutical companies to continue operating in the UK.”

This comes as the Prime Minister seeks positive trade outcomes during his visit to India following a trade agreement with the country.

But the price increase raises concerns over what was considered a positive relationship with the White House under Trump, as Starmer succeeded in securing the first trade deal ending the comprehensive tariff system launched by Trump earlier this year.

Trump threatened to impose tariffs of up to 100% on drug imports despite the UK receiving “preferential treatment” on tariffs, which was conditional on improving prices for American pharmaceutical companies operating in Britain.

A British government spokesperson said: “The pharmaceutical sector is critical to our National Health Service, our economy, and our plan for change. Through our life sciences sector plan, we are committed to working with the industry to accelerate growth in spending on innovative medicines compared to the past decade.”