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Laura Batchelor, Managing Partner

FIPRA

Laura.batchelor@fipra.com

My Job

I am Managing Partner of FIPRA Public Affairs, and Head of the Healthcare & Lifesciences Practice. I am also a member of the FIPRA Network Advisory Board.

My Experience

Over the past 25 years I have advised on EU and national government relations issues, whilst also driving FIPRA’s growth in Brussels. An essential ingredient of success has been identifying the common ground between the public and  private interest,  combined with  proactive engagement enabled by foresight in political and policy trends.

My expertise spans pharmaceuticals, medical devices and  the broader life sciences sector, as well as trade, competition and security. With a sound understanding of the interplay between EU and national policies, we have developed strategies for policy driven growth for our clients and supported market access. It has been an exciting journey advising on the creation of a number of multi-stakeholder coalitions which have effectively shaped policy thinking and political action at European and national level.

Earlier in my career I spent one year in Washington DC, building partnerships and business for the FIPRA Network, followed by five years in the UK.

I am a founder and board member of W@Lifesciences and serve as a Board Member of the British Chamber of Commerce to the EU and Belgium.

My Proudest Achievements

Delivering tangible impact in my work  is a real driver for me. The most ambitious campaign, which I am most proud of, is successfully convincing the EU  to repeal and amend EU health and safety legislation which threatened the use of Magnetic Resonance Imaging. This life-saving measure was delivered through the “Alliance for MRI” – made up of the European Society of Radiologists, leading patient advocates and industry. Only twice has the EU repealed a Directive!

My Education

  • Modern Languages, Oxford University, MA. Post Graduate, King’s College London.

My Languages

English, French, German.

My Interests outside work

Spending time with family and friends. Travelling, culture and hiking.

I also enjoy supporting younger professionals as they chart their own careers and juggle the different demands in their lives.

My Favourite Brussels anecdote

Being Belgian by adoption, at a later stage of life, one of the more touching moments I have had in my career was being welcomed into a meeting with the Belgian Government as a Belgian national.

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