Off-patent Drugs Bill

Antoinette Sandbach Excerpts

Friday 6th November 2015 Commons Chamber

[Craig Williams (Cardiff North) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to follow my hon. Friend the Member for North Dorset (Simon Hoare). I commend the hon. Member for Torfaen (Nick Thomas-Symonds) for introducing the Bill and for paying tribute to my predecessor, Jonathan Evans, who tried to introduce a similar Bill in the previous Parliament. I shall be brief, but there are a couple of things I should like to add to the debate. I feel strongly about this Bill, and I am here debating it even though it means missing a meeting with my constituents. I am not sure how I can get an apology to them for that, but hopefully that explanation helps.

A number of charities back the Bill, which has cross-party support. I have served as the vice-chair of the all-party parliamentary group on these issues, and I want to pay tribute to Breast Cancer Now, which has given us terrific support. It pioneered the way and has guided us through the Bill. The hon. Member for Torfaen knows that better than I do.

I want to dwell on the licence gap and the points that have emerged about GPs and off-label prescriptions. Some clinicians and GPs, as well as the wider group of people who can prescribe, have confidence and belief in the drugs. I think it is more an issue of confidence than one of off-label. The big issue for me and my predecessor, Jonathan, is the postcode lottery. Some GPs know that there is access and which off-patent and off-label drugs they can heartily recommend to their patients, and they willingly prescribe them. However, there are some clinicians who will not do so.

[Antoinette Sandbach (Eddisbury) (Con)]

The chair of the breast cancer clinical reference group, Professor Ian Smith, joined 39 other eminent clinicians in pledging public support for the Bill last week. Does my hon. Friend agree that there is an identifiable problem, which is likely to arise, with the insurance liability for prescribers?

[Craig Williams]

My hon. Friend makes an excellent point, and adds to the body of evidence. That issue could be looked at further in Committee.

In closing, I want to add one point. This Government and the coalition Government set up the cancer drugs fund, on which I commend them. I only wish it was available in Wales. The Bill would enable that fund to be used to apply for cheaper drugs, which would mean that the money went a lot further. Although I will continue my campaign to get our dear friends the Welsh Labour Government to initiate a cancer drugs fund, I commend the Bill to the Minister as it would help to deliver that fund, and to do so far more cheaply and effectively.

I have teased out the off-patent, off-label issue as I wanted to do, and I hope the Minister takes that and my colleagues’ points on board to pull this sector and the charities together, regardless of what happens to the Bill. However, I commend the Bill, I thank the hon. Member for Torfaen for leading on it and I once again commend the work of my predecessor, Jonathan.

--- Later in debate ---

[Alistair Burt]

The guidance says that in treating their patients, clinicians must first consider using a licensed medicine within its licensed indication. If that will not meet their patient’s needs, they can consider a licensed medicine outside its licensed indication, and only if that is not suitable should they consider using a medicine that is not licensed at all. We know that a great many medicines can offer benefits to patients when prescribed outside their licensed indications.

[Antoinette Sandbach]

Will the Minister give way?

[Alistair Burt]

Not at the moment, because this point is absolutely crucial to put on the record.

Prescribing in that way is part and parcel of normal, everyday clinical practice, as the hon. Member for Central Ayrshire confirmed. It is very common in prescribing for children and in treating some forms of pain. Most doctors, particularly GPs, will do it every day in their clinical practice. That has already been covered in relation to tamoxifen and raloxifene for the prevention of familial breast cancer. As was rightly identified by the hon. Member for Torfaen, the issue is compounded when drugs come off patent and new evidence suggests that they would be appropriate in the treatment of new indications.

The hon. Gentleman has gathered a lot of support for the Bill, but it does give the impression that such drugs are not being made available to patients. It also suggests that licensing is required to make these drugs available for patients, and that a NICE technology appraisal is required as well.

--- Later in debate ---

[Alistair Burt]

The reason I said earlier that I would go on until 2.30 and beyond is that I have not even begun to deal with the licensing arguments and the problems—[Interruption.] Hon. Members just said that I had run out of arguments, but I have not even covered the difficulty of the Secretary of State being put in the position of being the regulator and someone who applies for licences. There are plenty more arguments that need to be put and I think that we will run out of time.

[Antoinette Sandbach]

Given the Minister’s clear support for the principles behind the Bill, will he agree to meet the various organisations to see whether there is a non-legislative means of achieving the aims of the Bill?

[Alistair Burt]

I am certain that the Under-Secretary of State for Life Sciences will meet people soon at my request to carry on our discussion. It is clear that the House is not in any way comfortable with the Government’s position in resisting this Bill, so before the matter is considered again it is essential that the Government look at it further. If a message had gone out from the House that there was only one way for people to get access to the drugs they need, that would be wrong—