Asked by: Crispin Blunt (Independent - Reigate)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she made if the implications for her policies of the findings of the report by the APPG on CBD products entitled Plan for a Legal and Regulated UK Hemp and Cannabis Sector, published on 29 July 2022, on (a) the potential effect of reviewing CBD legislation on urban and rural job creation and tax income for the Government and (b) the potential effect on the CBD industry of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs proposals for the dosage threshold of 50 micrograms of controlled phytocannabinoids per unit of consumption, made to her Department by that body on 17 December 2021.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
No specific assessment has been made of the implications of the APPG CBD report on the potential effects on employment and taxation of a review of CBD legislation.
In January 2021, the Home Office wrote to the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) seeking the Council’s advice on how we can strengthen the law on consumer CBD products.
This followed concerns that some CBD products being sold for human consumption may contain THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), a controlled drug compound found within the cannabis plant, making these products likely to be unlawful.
The ACMD published their report on 17 December 2021, recommending changes to the law. We are in the process of considering their findings and the Government will respond in due course.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding his Department has made available to Integrated Care Boards to enable them to prescribe medical cannabis products.
Answered by Will Quince
The framework of National Health Service clinical advice on prescribing medicines will apply to clinicians working in integrated care boards (ICBs) as they have done to those working in the structures that preceded them.
Licensed cannabis-based medicines are routinely available and funded on the NHS. However, for unlicensed cannabis-based medicines, clinical guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) demonstrate a clear need for more evidence to support routine prescribing and funding decisions. NHS funding decisions follow clearly developed procedures that ensure equitable distribution of funding, prioritising those medicines that have proved their safety, quality, and clinical and cost effectiveness.
In addition to the NICE guidelines, the Chief Medical Officer and NHS England issued a letter on the 31 October 2018, and a supplementary letter on 20 November 2018, providing guidance to clinicians, the NHS and independent organisations following the rescheduling of cannabis-based products for medicinal use. This signposts guidance issued by the Royal College of Physicians, British Paediatric Neurology Association and Association of British Neurologists.
The Department has met with manufacturers of both licensed and unlicensed cannabis-based medicines and heard views on the regulatory framework surrounding these products.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what clinical advice is available to Integrated Care Boards on the use of medical cannabis products.
Answered by Will Quince
The framework of National Health Service clinical advice on prescribing medicines will apply to clinicians working in integrated care boards (ICBs) as they have done to those working in the structures that preceded them.
Licensed cannabis-based medicines are routinely available and funded on the NHS. However, for unlicensed cannabis-based medicines, clinical guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) demonstrate a clear need for more evidence to support routine prescribing and funding decisions. NHS funding decisions follow clearly developed procedures that ensure equitable distribution of funding, prioritising those medicines that have proved their safety, quality, and clinical and cost effectiveness.
In addition to the NICE guidelines, the Chief Medical Officer and NHS England issued a letter on the 31 October 2018, and a supplementary letter on 20 November 2018, providing guidance to clinicians, the NHS and independent organisations following the rescheduling of cannabis-based products for medicinal use. This signposts guidance issued by the Royal College of Physicians, British Paediatric Neurology Association and Association of British Neurologists.
The Department has met with manufacturers of both licensed and unlicensed cannabis-based medicines and heard views on the regulatory framework surrounding these products.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions his Department has had with UK manufactures of medical cannabis products on the adequacy of regulation of those products.
Answered by Will Quince
The framework of National Health Service clinical advice on prescribing medicines will apply to clinicians working in integrated care boards (ICBs) as they have done to those working in the structures that preceded them.
Licensed cannabis-based medicines are routinely available and funded on the NHS. However, for unlicensed cannabis-based medicines, clinical guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) demonstrate a clear need for more evidence to support routine prescribing and funding decisions. NHS funding decisions follow clearly developed procedures that ensure equitable distribution of funding, prioritising those medicines that have proved their safety, quality, and clinical and cost effectiveness.
In addition to the NICE guidelines, the Chief Medical Officer and NHS England issued a letter on the 31 October 2018, and a supplementary letter on 20 November 2018, providing guidance to clinicians, the NHS and independent organisations following the rescheduling of cannabis-based products for medicinal use. This signposts guidance issued by the Royal College of Physicians, British Paediatric Neurology Association and Association of British Neurologists.
The Department has met with manufacturers of both licensed and unlicensed cannabis-based medicines and heard views on the regulatory framework surrounding these products.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has he made of the potential merits of expanding the use of medical cannabis.
Answered by Will Quince
No assessment has been made. Licensed cannabis-based medicines are routinely available on the National Health Service, however, clinical guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence demonstrate a clear need for more evidence to support routine prescribing and funding decisions for unlicensed cannabis based products for medicinal use in humans. Until that evidence base is built, prescribers will remain reticent to prescribe and no decision can be made by the NHS on routine funding.
We continue to call on manufacturers to conduct research and we are working with regulatory, research and NHS partners to establish clinical trials to test the safety and efficacy of these products.
Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many prescriptions for cannabis-based medicines have been issued since those prescriptions became legal.
Answered by Will Quince
The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) is unable to provide the number of National Health Service prescription items for unlicensed cannabis-based medicines dispensed in the community in England. This information is being withheld in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), due to the number of items attributed to fewer than five patients and the elevated risk of potential patient identifiable information.
However, the following table shows NHS and private prescribing data for the number of items prescribed for licensed and unlicensed cannabis based medicines dispensed in the community in England.
Type of prescribing | Time period | Number of items |
NHS prescribing licensed medicines | November 2018 to October 2022 | 11,976 |
Private prescribing licensed medicines | November 2018 to October 2022 | 140 |
Private prescribing unlicensed medicines | November 2018 to July 2022 | 89,239 |
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to take steps to establish trials on the use of Bedrocan cannabis medicines for paediatric drug-resistant epilepsy.
Answered by Will Quince
The licensed cannabis-based medicine Epidyolex is routinely prescribed on the National Health Service for two forms of epilepsy. However, clinical guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence demonstrate a clear need for further evidence to support routine prescribing and funding decisions for unlicensed cannabis-based medicines on the NHS.
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) has issued two calls for research proposals and a highlight notice on medicinal cannabis. Manufacturers, including those for Bedrocan Oils, are responsible for generating evidence to support the use of these products and to seek regulatory approval. The Government encourages manufacturers to do so and offers scientific and research advice from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and the NIHR.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
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 help ensure the availability of cannabis-based medicines on the NHS for patients with epilepsy.
Answered by Will Quince
The licensed cannabis-based medicine Epidyolex is routinely prescribed on the National Health Service for two forms of epilepsy. However, clinical guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence demonstrate a clear need for further evidence to support routine prescribing and funding decisions for unlicensed cannabis-based medicines on the NHS.
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) has issued two calls for research proposals and a highlight notice on medicinal cannabis. Manufacturers, including those for Bedrocan Oils, are responsible for generating evidence to support the use of these products and to seek regulatory approval. The Government encourages manufacturers to do so and offers scientific and research advice from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and the NIHR.
Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many to UK-based randomised clinical trials for cannabis-based medicinal products (a) have been completed since 2018 and (b) are currently ongoing.
Answered by Will Quince
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency advised there have been 20 United Kingdom-based randomised clinical trials for cannabis-based medicinal products completed since 2018 and 13 are currently ongoing.
Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to encourage manufacturers of cannabis-based medicinal products to (a) conduct clinical trials and (b) pursue regulatory approval for their products.
Answered by Will Quince
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) has issued two calls for research proposals and a highlight notice on medicinal cannabis. Manufacturers are responsible for generating evidence to support the use of these products and to seek regulatory approval. The Government has encouraged manufacturers to do so and offered scientific and research advice from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and the NIHR.