§ Mrs. Renée Shortasked the Secretary of State for Social Services why nicotine substitute chewing gum, having been accepted as safe and effective by the Committee on Safety of Medicines, is not approved for prescription on the National Health Service.
§ Mr. John PattenThe Advisory Committee on Borderline Substances, an independent professional body, advises the Department and the medical profession whether a substance should be regarded as a drug for the purposes of prescribing under the National Health Service. It considered Nicorette nicotine chewing gum in the light of all the available evidence but advised that the case that this product was of therapeutic value when used in the normal circumstances of general practice remained unproven. It was unable to recommend that nicotine chewing gum should be regarded as a drug when prescribed by general medical practitioners.