Julian Beach

Interim Executive Director Healthcare Quality and Access, MHRA

Julian oversees the portfolio that is designed to ensure the quality and access of products to the UK market - this includes scientific advice, licensing assessment, marketing authorisations for all innovative and established medicines.

Julian is an experienced leader with a demonstrated history of Quality, Regulatory and Operations in the pharmaceuticals industry. Skilled in Quality, Operations and Digitalisation of Systems, Operations Management delivery including OpEX / Six Sigma with a love for people development. Julian has strong links to industry and regulatory bodies with quality focus. He is a fellow of the RSC, with an MBA from Henley Business School, adding to BSc (Hons), Chartered Chemist and Chartered Scientist.

Louise Knowles

Deputy Director, Innovation Accelerator and Regulatory Science, MHRA

Louise has over 17 years of experience working in Scientific roles across the Civil Service, and joined the MHRA in October 2023. The Innovation Accelerator and Regulatory Science team provides innovators enhanced access to MHRA scientific expertise and regulatory guidance, bringing together the work of the Innovation Office, Horizon Scanning functions as well as leading on the delivery of the Innovative Licensing and Access Pathway (ILAP) and the Innovative Devices Access Pathway (IDAP).  She was previously the Head of Research Capacity and Growth at DHSC and part of the leadership team for the National Institute for Health and Care Research, providing the strategic leadership and oversight of the NIHR Translational Research Infrastructure and NIHR Clinical Research Network as well as leading work to deliver on the ambitions set out in the UK Vision for Clinical Research Delivery. Prior to her role in DHSC she was a Foresight Researcher at the Government Office for Science and led a number of Research Programmes for the Food Standards Agency.