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 adequacy of the (a) the number of universities offering and (b) number of places available on Overseas Pharmacists' Assessment Programme courses.

Overseas pharmacy professionals must meet the same standards as United Kingdom pharmacy professionals. Pharmacists that do not hold eligible qualifications, or who are non-EEA pharmacists, must complete the Overseas Pharmacists’ Assessment Programme (OSPAP), which is regulated by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), before they can register and practise in the UK.

The OSPAP is currently oversubscribed, and the GPhC has written to accredited educational providers to highlight the demand for places. Ultimately, this is a decision for providers and a limited number of additional places have been created.