Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for its policies of the decision by the Professional Standards Authority to renew the Society of Homeopaths’ accreditation.

The Department does not maintain a position on any complementary or alternative medicine treatments. It is the responsibility of local National Health Service organisations to make decisions on the commissioning and funding of any healthcare treatments for NHS patients, taking into account issues around safety and clinical and cost-effectiveness. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence does not currently recommend that homeopathy should be used in the treatment of any health condition.

The Professional Standards Authority (PSA) is an independent organisation who has responsibility for the accredited registers scheme. The PSA is clear that accreditation is not an endorsement of a particular treatment or therapy or its efficacy but ensures that practitioners are part of a body that works to good practice and is committed to protecting the public.