30 June 2015

LSE: VER

Vernalis plc - Appointment of Non-Executive Director

Vernalis plc announces that Dr Ian David Gilham, aged 55, has been appointed to the Board as a Non-Executive Director with effect from 1 July 2015.  Dr Gilham will also serve as Chairman of the Company's Remuneration Committee.

Dr Gilham has international experience in the research, development and commercialisation of diagnostic and pharmaceutical products.  He is Non-Executive Chairman of a number of UK and European companies including Epistem Holdings Limited, Concepta Diagnostics Limited, Horizon Discovery Group plc, Multiplicom NV, and Biosurfit SA.  Dr Gilham was formerly CEO of Axis-Sheild plc, a FTSE listed global diagnostics company.  He also previously worked at GlaxoSmithKline as Vice President - Pharmacogenetics and before that held international general management, marketing business development and R&D positions with Abbott Laboratories, Celltech and Amersham.

Peter Fellner, Chairman of Vernalis plc, commented:

"I am delighted to welcome Ian to the Vernalis Board. His depth of experience in the global pharmaceutical industry will be very valuable for the Board, and we look forward to his contribution, as we continue to build value for Vernalis' shareholders."

Disclosures:

Dr Gilham is a director or has been a director of the following companies during the previous five years:

Other than as set out above there is no further information to be disclosed under schedule 2(g) and Rule 17 of the AIM Rules in respect of Dr Gilham's appointment with effect from 1 July 2015 as a Non-Executive Director of the Company.

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About Vernalis

Vernalis is a revenue generating, commercial stage pharmaceutical company with significant expertise in drug development.  The Group has two approved products; Tuzistra™ XR targeting the US prescription cough cold market and, frovatriptan for the acute treatment of migraine. It has an exclusive licensing agreement to develop and commercialise multiple novel products focussed on the US prescription cough cold market as well as eight programmes in its NCE development pipeline.  Vernalis has also significant expertise in fragment and structure based drug discovery which it leverages to enter into collaborations with larger pharmaceutical companies.  The Company's technologies, capabilities and products have been endorsed over the last five years by collaborations with leading pharmaceutical companies, including AKP, Biogen Idec, Endo, GSK, Genentech, Lundbeck, Menarini, Novartis, Servier Taisho and Tris.