§ Mr. Nicholas Wintertonasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will make a statement on the continuing closure of pharmacies and particularly the effect of such closures on rural areas.
§ Sir George YoungMy right hon. Friend's Department watches the effect of closures on the accessibility of pharmacies. I know that some closures have caused inconvenience and individual difficulty, particularly in rural areas and for less mobile people. There does not however appear to be widespread serious difficulty for patients. Of 210 pharmacies which closed in England and Wales in 1978, eight were 2 km or more from the 335W next pharmacy but eight out of 132 which opened were similarly distant.