Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations his Department has received from Schering/Bayer on the safety of hormone pregnancy tests.

Potential members of the Expert Group on Hormone Pregnancy Tests will be asked to declare any interests (financial or non-financial) in relevant pharmaceutical companies or in any other area that could affect their impartiality. All experts’ interests will be carefully considered to determine their suitability for membership on the Group. Members will be asked again about potential interests in the meetings to decide on the appropriate level of participation in discussions.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA, in its capacity as the arm’s length body of the Department of Health with responsibility for the regulation of medicinal products) has no record of any representations from Schering/Bayer on the safety of hormone pregnancy tests since they were withdrawn in 1978. The MHRA is has asked all companies which marketed hormonal pregnancy tests to fully disclose the research evidence and test results they hold for inclusion in the review.