Bennett is director of Women Into The Network (WIN), an organisation based at Durham Business School which supports the creation and management of businesses by women. Her career began more than 20 years ago when she worked in the Sudan on a women's business development programme. With politics back to normal after the party conference season - and the intriguing diversion of the Conservative leadership election - the Chancellor, Gordon Brown, will return to the fore. " That an idea that started with only a few people and little financial support should become in such a short time such a big campaign involving thousands across the country is itself a tribute to the spirit of enterprise, " he said Well, he would say that, wouldn't he. But you could also argue that if enterprise was so prevalent it would not need some sort of Notting Hill Carnival-type event to celebrate it.. It is a lucky few who have the kind of driving passion for their work that Dinah Bennett musters up effortlessly on a daily basis, and her outstanding contribution to promoting individual enterprises and supporting small business has been officially recognised by The Queen's Award for Enterprise Promotion (QAEP) that she received earlier this year. Last year's campaign saw 158,000 people attending 1,172 events run by 481 organisations and was hailed by none other than Mr Brown.
Moreover, we are rapidly approaching National Enterprise Week. If this has passed you by, the second such week takes place from 14 to 20 November and is - to quote from the promotional literature - "a celebration of enterprise in all its forms, with hundreds of activities and events across the UK". And when he is on his feet, the word "enterprise" is never far away. We can expect to hear a lot about enterprise in the coming weeks.
Here The Independent on Sunday looks at both sides of the argument consuming one of the world's most talked-about industries.Case for the defenceThe biggest argument pharmaceutical companies have in their favour is that they make products that not only save lives but have changed the very way we live our lives.And the industry believes that in this healthier day and age we have lost sight of this. Yet few others are so easily convinced - and the sector has a mountain to climb to achieve a reputation it can be proud of.Big Pharma and its BlockbustersThe world's top 10 pharmaceutical companies, listed according to their market valuePfizer, US, $161bnViagra (erectile dysfunction), Celebrex (painkiller), Lipitor (cholesterol lowering), Zoloft (antidepressant)GlaxoSmithKline, UK, $147bnAdvair (asthma), Paxil CR (antidepressant), Combivir (HIV)Novartis, Switzerland, $146bnDiovan (hypertension), Gleevec (cancer)Roche, Switzerland, $127bnTamiflu (influenza), Avastin (colon cancer), Mabthera (lymphoma), Heceptin (breast cancer)Sanofi-Aventis, France, $114bnLovenox (deep vein thrombosis), Plavix (thrombosis), Avapro (hypertension), Ambien (insomnia)AstraZeneca, UK, $74bnCrestor (cholesterol lowering), Nexium (ulcers)Wyeth, US, $62bnEffexor (antidepressant), Prevnar (meningitis), Enbrel (arthritis)Merck, US, $59bnGardasil (cervical cancer vaccine, to be launched), Zocor (cholesterol lowering), Vioxx (painkiller, withdrawn but FDA to review)Eli Lilly, US, $58bnProzac (antidepressant), Zyprexa (schizophrenia), Gemzar (pancreatic cancer)Schering-Plough, US, $31bnRemicade (auto-immune conditions), Clarinex (allergies). But now [companies] are so big, so influential, so powerful, that they don't have qualitative and quantitative feedback that allows them to see where they are going wrong."Investors can be won over by the hope of strong sales or a promising pipeline. Two of the UK's biggest pharmacies, Boots and Alliance UniChem, are set to merge and one of their strategies is to distribute generic drugs across Europe.
