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Written Question
Primodos
Thursday 14th March 2024

Asked by: Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester, Withington)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will implement the recommendations in the report by the APPG on Hormone Pregnancy Test entitled Bitter Pill: Primodos - the forgotten thalidomide, published on 27 February 2024.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

We remain hugely sympathetic to the families who believe that they have suffered due to the use of Hormone Pregnancy Tests (HPTs). In 2017 an independent Expert Working Group conducted a comprehensive review of the available scientific evidence, and concluded that the data did not support a causal association between the use of HPTs, such as Primodos, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. This remains the Government’s position. The Government has committed to reviewing any new evidence related to HPTs, and a possible causal association with adverse pregnancy outcomes.


Written Question
Primodos
Thursday 14th March 2024

Asked by: Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester, Withington)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has made an assessment of the potential implications for her Department’s policies of the report by the APPG on Hormone Pregnancy Test entitled Bitter Pill: Primodos - the forgotten thalidomide, published on 27 February 2024.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

We remain hugely sympathetic to the families who believe that they have suffered due to the use of Hormone Pregnancy Tests (HPTs). In 2017 an independent Expert Working Group conducted a comprehensive review of the available scientific evidence, and concluded that the data did not support a causal association between the use of HPTs, such as Primodos, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. This remains the Government’s position. The Government has committed to reviewing any new evidence related to HPTs, and a possible causal association with adverse pregnancy outcomes.


Commons Chamber
Heart and Circulatory Diseases: Premature Deaths - Thu 22 Feb 2024
Department of Health and Social Care

Mentions:
1: Andrew Bridgen (Ind - North West Leicestershire) For posterity, we must remember that it was 11 years after the thalidomide scandal was exposed in 1961 - Speech Link
2: Andrew Bridgen (Ind - North West Leicestershire) we will see much the same, following the roll-out of the covid-19 vaccines, as we saw with Vioxx and thalidomide - Speech Link


Written Question
Primodos
Tuesday 19th March 2024

Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool, Walton)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to take steps to implement recommendations in the report by the APPG on Hormone Pregnancy Test entitled Bitter Pill: Primodos - the forgotten thalidomide, published on 27 February 2024.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

We remain hugely sympathetic to the families who believe that they have suffered because of using Hormone Pregnancy Tests (HPTs). In 2017 an independent Expert Working Group (EWG) conducted a comprehensive review of the available scientific evidence and concluded that the data did not support a causal association between the use of HPTs, such as Primodos, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. This remains the Government’s position. The Government has committed to reviewing any new evidence related to HPTs and a possible causal association with adverse pregnancy outcomes.

On the recently published recommendations of the HPT All-Party Parliamentary Group, we have no plans to set up an independent review to examine the findings of the EWG. In the interests of transparency, all evidence collected and papers considered by the EWG were published in 2018, along with full minutes of its discussions. Details of conflicts of interests and how these were managed were also published. The Government is reviewing Professor Danielsson’s publication to consider if it presents any new evidence or analyses not already considered by the EWG on HPTs, and will be seeking independent expert advice from the Commission on Human Medicines in due course.


Commons Chamber
Access to Redress Schemes - Thu 18 Apr 2024
Cabinet Office

Mentions:
1: Christian Wakeford (Lab - Bury South) that thinking of the further after-effects of one of the biggest scandals in the health service since thalidomide - Speech Link
2: Christopher Chope (Con - Christchurch) The battle is in many ways a repetition of the thalidomide debate…The result is decaying confidence in - Speech Link
3: Christopher Chope (Con - Christchurch) I have seen other healthcare scandals in this country rightly receive recognition and redress, from thalidomide - Speech Link


Commons Chamber
Hormone Pregnancy Tests - Thu 07 Sep 2023
Department for Business and Trade

Mentions:
1: Allan Dorans (SNP - Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock) I had heard of thalidomide, as it received far greater coverage in the media at the time. - Speech Link
2: Jacob Rees-Mogg (CON - North East Somerset) We have seen it with Hillsborough, the infected blood scandal and even with thalidomide. - Speech Link
3: Anna Firth (CON - Southend West) It happened in the case of thalidomide, for which the Department paid around £80 million over 10 years - Speech Link
4: Hannah Bardell (SNP - Livingston) Thalidomide campaigners were able to settle with the company. - Speech Link


Westminster Hall
Excess Death Trends - Tue 16 Jan 2024
Department for Business and Trade

Mentions:
1: Andrew Bridgen (Ind - North West Leicestershire) It took 11 years after the drug was withdrawn in 1961 for the thalidomide scandal to be first raised - Speech Link


Commons Chamber
Business of the House - Thu 07 Sep 2023
Leader of the House

Mentions:
1: Andrew Bridgen (TRP - North West Leicestershire) In 1958, 65 years ago, thalidomide was first marketed in the UK. - Speech Link


Non-Departmental Publication (Guidance and Regulation)
Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency

Apr. 04 2024

Source Page: International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use Guidelines
Document: S5(R3) – Revision of S5 Guidelines on Detection of Toxicity to Reproduction for Human Pharmaceuticals (PDF)

Found: ICH S5(R3) Guideline 102 Thalidomide CAS No.: 50-35-1 Rat NOAEL Dose Cmax AUC Rat


Commons Chamber
Infected Blood Compensation Scheme - Tue 21 May 2024
Cabinet Office

Mentions:
1: Andrew Bridgen (Ind - North West Leicestershire) I imagine that that is exactly what we would have heard if we were here in 1972 when the thalidomide - Speech Link