HL Deb 30 June 2000 vol 614 cc110-1WA
Lord Lucas

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will list all injectible medical products approved for use in the United Kingdom which either contain material of bovine origin or use such material in their preparation. [HL2573]

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath

Many hundreds of injectible medicinal products authorised for use in Europe and the United Kingdom contain material of bovine origin or use such material in their preparation. Each new application for authorisation is assessed individually by the Medicines Control Agency for national authorisations and by the relevant scientific rapporteurs for European authorisations to ensure that they comply with the European guidelines on minimising the risk of transmitting spongiform encephalopathies through medicinal products. The information is held on individual files, but there is no centrally held list and it would incur disproportionate cost to produce one.