EX-99.23(A) 4 ex-23a.txt CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANTS We hereby consent to the incorporation by reference in this Registration Statement on Form S-8 of our report dated March 3, 2003 relating to the financial statements, which appears in the 2002 Annual Report to Shareholders of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc., which is incorporated by reference in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc.'s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2002. We also consent to the incorporation by reference of our report dated March 3, 2003 relating to the financial statement schedule, which appears in such Annual Report on Form 10-K. /s/ PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP Philadelphia, PA July 10, 2003