FOR RNS RELEASE:

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES OF ARTICLE 7 OF REGULATION (EU) NO 596/2014

Board Change

3 April 2017, London - Verona Pharma plc (AIM: VRP.L) ("Verona Pharma" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercialising innovative therapeutics for the treatment of respiratory diseases with significant unmet medical needs, announced today that Patrick Humphrey D.Sc, OBE, has decided to retire from the Board as a Non-Executive Director, to take effect on 15 April 2017. Patrick joined the Verona Pharma Board in 2009, and there are no plans to replace him. The role of Dr. Humphrey on the Nominations and Corporate Governance Committee, will be filled by Dr. Anders Ullman, currently a Non-Executive Director of the Company.

David Ebsworth, Chairman of the Board of Verona Pharma, commented:

"We would like to thank Pat for his many important contributions to the Company's R&D strategy, his long service and his dedication to the Company. He has been a valuable member of the Board since joining in 2009, and will continue to contribute to the Company's research and development activities in an advisory capacity."

-ENDS-

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About Verona Pharma plc

Verona Pharma is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercialising innovative therapeutics for the treatment of respiratory diseases with significant unmet medical needs. Verona Pharma's product candidate, RPL554, is a first-in-class, inhaled, dual inhibitor of the enzymes phosphodiesterase 3 and 4 that acts as both a bronchodilator and an anti‑inflammatory agent in a single compound. In clinical trials, treatment with RPL554 has been observed to result in statistically significant improvements in lung function as compared to placebo and has shown clinically meaningful and statistically significant improvements in lung function when added to two commonly used bronchodilators as compared to either bronchodilator administered as a single agent. RPL554 has also shown anti-inflammatory effects and been well tolerated in clinical trials. Verona Pharma is developing RPL554 for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis, and potentially asthma.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements, including without limitation statements regarding the effective date of Dr. Humphrey's retirement and our corporate governance plans. 

These forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from our expectations expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.

These and other important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements made in this press release. Any such forward-looking statements represent management's estimates as of the date of this press release. While we may elect to update such forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we disclaim any obligation to do so, even if subsequent events cause our views to change. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.