Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions she has had with pharmaceutical companies on the continuing provision of compassionate use schemes.

Pharmaceutical companies can establish compassionate use or early access programmes through which medicines may be made available to National Health Service patients free of charge ahead of an NHS commissioning decision. Such schemes operate outside the established commissioning arrangements for medicines, and their provision remains a matter for the pharmaceutical companies concerned.

Following discussions with the industry, the Government announced on 23 June 2026 that it will bring forward a new approach to the VAT treatment of free-of-charge donations of medicines, either through changes to the VAT rules or a reimbursement scheme. Officials are continuing to engage with industry to explore the options.