Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the NHS contract with pharmacies includes any provisions restricting the publicising of closing times.

There are no restrictions on pharmacies with National Health Service contracts publicising their closing times. The National Health Service (Pharmaceutical and Local Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 2013 require pharmacies which are not distance selling pharmacies to display a notice specifying the time at which they are open for the provision of drugs and appliances. The 2013 Regulations also require pharmacies to have an accurate profile in the NHS Digital directory of services and on the NHS.UK website. The profile includes information on opening hours and must be updated when there are changes to a pharmacy’s opening hours, either temporarily or permanently.