Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she is taking steps to increase supplies of epilepsy medication in south London.

The Department has a role to play in ensuring that supplies of medicines are available nationally, and in sufficient quantity to meet demand. The Department does not monitor stocks of medicine at a local level, and as such no assessment has been made of the level of stocks of epilepsy medication in South London pharmacies.

The Department has been working intensively with the pharmaceutical industry, National Health Service, and others to address issues with the supply of some epilepsy medications. As a result of our action, some supply issues with Tegretol prolonged-release tablets have been resolved. However, some issues remain, and we are working with suppliers to resolve these as soon as possible by expediting future deliveries, and ensuring that alternative products remain available. We have issued guidance to healthcare professionals on how to manage patients requiring affected medicines while supply is disrupted. The Department has been engaging with the Epilepsy Society to keep them updated on developments.