Asked by: John Glen (Conservative - Salisbury)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when she expects the Office for Budget Responsibility to publish its first set of areas of research interest, as stated in the Economic and Fiscal Outlook - November 2025, published on 26 November 2025.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has full discretion over the timing of its own publication programme.
Asked by: John Glen (Conservative - Salisbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of reclassifying medicines from prescription-only to over-the-counter on costs to the NHS.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government supports the reclassification of prescription only medicines (POMs) to over the counter (OTC) medicines, including for cost savings to the National Health Service, where it is safe and appropriate to do so, as this can improve patient access and support selfcare while maintaining high standards of public health protection.
Decisions on whether POMs can be safely reclassified for OTC sale are taken by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency following an assessment of the safety, quality, and efficacy of the medicine and whether it can be appropriately used without the direct supervision of a prescriber.
Asked by: John Glen (Conservative - Salisbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress has been made by his Department in encouraging more reclassification applications to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA); whether reclassification applications will form part of the MHRA's forthcoming strategy; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of reclassification applications on (a) the NHS, (b) patients and (c) the Exchequer.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government supports the reclassification of medicines where it is safe and appropriate to do so, as this can improve patient access and support selfcare while maintaining high standards of public health protection. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) actively engages with industry to encourage well evidenced reclassification applications and has updated its guidance and processes to provide greater clarity and efficiency.
Reclassification forms part of the MHRA’s wider strategic work to support proportionate regulation and improve access to medicines, including through closer engagement with industry and the use of scientific advice to support high quality applications.
Where successful, reclassification can benefit the National Health Service by reducing pressure on primary care services, enable patients to access appropriate treatments more conveniently through pharmacies or over the counter supply, and deliver wider economic benefits by supporting selfcare and reducing unnecessary healthcare utilisation. Each application is assessed on its individual merits to ensure that any reclassification maintains patient safety and delivers overall public benefit.
However, reclassification is not appropriate in all circumstances. In particular, where the need for ongoing clinical oversight remains important, or where cost or ability to pay could create barriers to equitable access for some patients, prescription supply through the NHS may remain the most appropriate route. Consideration of patient affordability and health inequalities forms part of the overall assessment of whether reclassification is in the public interest.