Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether test purchase operations have been conducted to monitor the compliance of (a) online and (b) offline retailers with the provisions of the Poisons Act 1972; and if she will make a statement.

The Home Office has a wide range of methods used in monitoring the compliance of online and offline retailers to ensure that they are adhering to the law. One method is to have a covert officer attempt to purchase a banned or restricted product without meeting the required conditions (i.e. having a Home Office issued licence). Due to operational security, we are unable to provide further details.