Ireland has recorded steady growth in pharmaceutical clinical trials but continues to trail comparable European countries by a wide margin, according to new data, prompting renewed calls for systemic reform.
A new Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (IPHA) report found that 165 industry-sponsored clinical trials were started in Ireland between 2023 and 2025, with activity accelerating from 41 in 2023 to 73 in 2025 – a 44 per cent increase in the final year of the period. Despite the upward trajectory, the figures expose a significant competitive gap with peer nations.
Denmark vs Ireland
Denmark, whose population and economic profile closely mirrors Ireland’s, initiated 425 clinical trials over the same period – more than two-and-a-half times as many. Ireland ranked 14th out of 27 EU member states for per capita clinical trial activity in 2025.
The most striking finding concerns start-up times. Ireland ranked last among all EU member states for the period between…
