Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of medicinal cannabis as a treatment option for fibromyalgia.

The Department has made no such assessment. Clinical guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommend that cannabis-based products for medicinal use are not offered to manage chronic pain in adults and that cannabidiol (CBD) only be offered as part of a clinical trial. NICE recognises the lack of evidence to support the use of these medicines and recommends that further research is carried out on the clinical and cost effectiveness of CBD as an add-on treatment for adults with fibromyalgia.