Medical Cannabis (Access) Bill

Debate between Christian Wakeford and Rosena Allin-Khan

Friday 10th December 2021 Commons Chamber

[Dr Allin-Khan]

I will make a bit more progress and then I would be absolutely delighted to give way.

The situation that we face, whereby only three prescriptions in three years have been allowed, pushes more and more patients into the hands of private providers, who, as we have heard, are charging extortionate amounts of money each month for treatment. For the vast majority of people, that is simply out of reach.

Let me add something that I was not originally going to say: I, too, am a science geek. I have a biochemistry degree and I worked in medical research before even going to medical school. I understand the importance of robust, evidence-based medicine, but I can also tell hon. Members that people searching in a very desperate way for things that will improve the quality of their life, or even keep their children alive, might also go to places where absolutely no thought is given to the purity of a drug. They may seek alternatives that are increasingly more dangerous for their children. It is important to recognise that.

[Christian Wakeford (Bury South) (Con)]

As another science geek with a chemistry degree, in which I specialised in drug design and synthesis, I completely agree with the hon. Member’s point. That is part of the concern. It is about having not just the product right now, but the right product, and about making sure that we have efficacy and safety. I completely appreciate all these points. That is why I do not necessarily agree with the perspective on the commission, but I have a lot of sympathy for clauses 1 and 2, which will go some way to help. However, the main stumbling block is the financing. We have already legalised the product. Every time it falls down, is it because it has not been licensed? Maybe, but finance seems to be the stumbling block at every single level.

[Dr Allin-Khan]

I do not need to tell the hon. Member, who has mentioned his CV—as many of us scientists have today—the cost of not investing in these young people. Think of every time a young person who would benefit from this drug goes into intensive care with seizures, every time they have alternative, expensive sedatives keeping them alive on a ventilator or the fact that they do not fulfil their potential, cannot go on and work and cannot give back to the economy. It is a false economy not to invest in this.