Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has made in setting up an expert group to provide advice on streamlining the medicinal licensing process for e-cigarettes; whether that expert group has been convened yet; and if not, what steps they will take to expedite that process.

In December 2018, the Commission of Human Medicines (CHM) endorsed the formation of an ad hoc working group of experts to consider the recommendations from the Science and Technology Select Committee on e-cigarettes that impact licensing of e-cigarettes as medicines. In March 2019, the CHM endorsed the terms of reference and membership of the ad hoc working group and the appointment of the chair. The first meeting is expected to be held in late April 2019, subject to availability of the members.