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 sustainability of access to medication to control epilepsy, including access to tegretol.

The Department is responsible for the security of supply of medicines and ensuring continued access to medicines for all patients is a key priority. There is a team within the Department, which deals specifically with medicine supply issues arising both in the community and hospitals. It works closely with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, the pharmaceutical industry, NHS England and others operating in the supply chain to help prevent shortages and to ensure that the risks to patients are minimised when they do arise.