§ Mr. Deakinsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) if regional health authorities have any means of checking on the manufacturing standards overseas for products imported for use in the National Health Service;
(2) why foreign manufacturers of items used in the National Health Service are not required to hold a manufacturer's licence in addition to a product licence.
§ Dr. VaughanThe Medicines Act 1968 extends only to medicinal products within the United Kingdom. Control of foreign manufacturers is effected through product licences, which may be suspended or revoked if manufacturing conditions are found to be unsatisfactory. A medicinal product may be imported to the order of a doctor or dentist for a particular patient of his, without a licence; within the National Health Service it is then for the practitioner or the health authority concerned to satisfy themselves about its quality.