HC Deb 14 November 1944 vol 404 cc1827-8W
Sir E. Graham-Little

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he is aware that licences to import penicillin into Jamaica have been withheld on the advice of the British Mission in Washington; and what steps he proposes to take to ensure that people in Jamaica may obtain urgently needed supplies of penicillin.

Colonel Stanley

Licences to import penicillin commercially were doubtless withheld by the Government of Jamaica in accordance with the conditions which had to be imposed to ensure that the limited supplies of this drug which could be released for civilian purposes were used to the best advantage. Use had to be restricted to centres where adequate facilities existed for controlled clinical trial. To ensure that all supplies reaching the Colony were so used, it was arranged that imports should be through Government channels. As, however, the Jamaica Government encountered some difficulty in obtaining supplies, interim arrangements have been made for an emergency supply to be sent to Jamaica commercially.