Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure continuity of drug and alcohol treatment services during the covid-19 outbreak.

Local authorities are responsible for assessing local needs and commissioning drug and alcohol prevention, treatment and harm reduction services to meet these needs. It is important that these services are maintained during the COVID-19 pandemic. Guidance to support commissioners and providers of services for people who use drugs and alcohol during the COVID-19 pandemic is being developed as of 2 April 2020 and will be published shortly.