Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the public health risks posed by illegal online sales of optical appliances, particularly for children and other vulnerable groups.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for the regulation of medicines for human use, medical devices, and blood products for transfusion in the United Kingdom. This includes applying the legal controls on the retail sale, supply, and advertising of medicines which are set out in the Human Medicines Regulations 2012.

Sourcing medicines from unregulated suppliers significantly increases the risk of getting a product which is either falsified or not authorised for use. Products purchased in this way will not meet the MHRA’s strict quality and safety standards and could expose patients to incorrect dosages or dangerous ingredients.

Public safety is the number one priority for the MHRA, and its Criminal Enforcement Unit works hard to prevent, detect, and investigate illegal activity involving medicines and medical devices and takes robust enforcement action where necessary. It works closely with other health regulators, customs authorities, law enforcement agencies, and private sector partners, including e-commerce and the internet industry to identify, remove, and block online content promoting the illegal sale of medicines and medical devices.

The MHRA seeks to identify and, where appropriate, prosecute online sellers responsible for putting public health at risk. Last year, the MHRA and its partners seized more than 17 million doses of illegally traded medicines, including those usually issued on prescription. Additionally, the MHRA has also disrupted thousands of links to websites and social media pages selling medical products to the public illegally.

The MHRA’s FakeMeds campaign provides advice to people in the UK who are considering buying medication online, outlining how products can be accessed from safe and legitimate source.

Anyone who believes they’ve had a side effect from a medicine, or who believes they’ve received falsified stock, can report it to the MHRA’s Yellow Card scheme.