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 implications for his policies of the decision by the Chinese Government to approve the drug Actemra for treating complications arising from covid-19.

The Department is considering carefully all available evidence around the potential of different medicines for use in treating COVID-19.

Clinical trials are being developed to assess the benefits of a number of different medicines in treating COVID-19. Further medicines may be trialled should evidence indicate to the Department this would be an appropriate course of action.

The Department, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, Public Health England and the National Health Service are working together to ensure that trials can begin as soon as possible. The first trial in the United Kingdom in hospitalised patients should begin later this week.