§ Mr. Heddleasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) whether he has received any representations from members of the British Diabetic Association in connection with the provision of disposable needles and syringes to insulin-dependent diabetics;
(2) whether he will now bring forward proposals to provide for the free supply of disposable needles and syringes to insulin-dependent diabetics currently treated under the National Health Service.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeThe secretaries of several local branches of the British Diabetic Association have made representations, on behalf of their members, about the provision of such single-use needles and syringes to insulin-dependent diabetics. We have received similar representations from many individual persons, both diabetics and non-diabetics.
Arrangements already exist for such single-use needles and syringes to be supplied free of charge through the hospital service where they are considered medically essential for a particular diabetic patient. We have no plans to make them more generally available under the National Health Service. To supply them free on prescription to all insulin-dependent diabetics would cost about £10 million a year and I am afraid that it would not be right to divert expenditure of that order from other more pressing priorities within the National Health Service.