Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information he holds on those NHS breast cancer drugs that pharmaceutical companies will have six weeks' supply of by 29 March 2019.

We understand that breast cancer drugs are vitally important to many people in this country. Our ‘no deal’ European Union exit contingency plans include sensible mitigations for medicines that come to the United Kingdom from or via the EU/European Economic Area (EEA), to ensure that the supply of breast cancer drugs and other essential medicines to patients is not disrupted.

In August 2018, the Department wrote to all pharmaceutical companies that supply prescription-only and pharmacy medicines to the UK that come from or via the EU/EEA asking them to ensure a minimum of six weeks additional supply in the UK, over and above existing business-as-usual buffer stocks, by 29 March 2019 in a ‘no deal’ scenario. The duration of the stockpiling requirement was based on the Government’s reasonable worst-case scenario border disruption planning assumptions.

We also recognise that certain medicines with short shelf lives, including medical radioisotopes, cannot be reasonably stockpiled. Where these medicines are imported from the EU or EEA, we have asked that suppliers ensure in advance plans to air freight these medicines from the EU in the event of the no deal exit.

The Department is unable to discuss specific medicines because to we have committed to treating all information received confidentially, securely and to using it only for the purposes of the Department’s programme, in order to reassure participating companies. This means not introducing information about a specific company, medicine, or a supply route into the public domain or to a third party.