Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of NHS and medical professionals body guidelines on the prescription of medical cannabis.

The interim clinical guidance, commissioned by NHS England and issued by the Royal College of Physicians, British Paediatric Neurology Association and Association of British Neurologists is based on the best available clinical evidence for safety, efficacy and cost effectiveness and reflects clinical guidance that has been published in other jurisdictions.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, has been commissioned to develop guidelines for the National Health Service on the prescribing of cannabis-based medicinal products by October 2019. This will update and replace the interim guidance.