§ Mr. Nicholas WintertonTo ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) what information he has as the basis of the investigation currently being undertaken by the Office of Fair Trading into the resale price maintenance of medicines; and if he will make a statement; [3013]
(2) what estimate he has made as to the likely savings to the National Health Service from the abolition of the resale price maintenance scheme for medicines; [3015]
(3) if he will support the abolition of the retail price maintenance of medicines. [3019]
Mr. John M. Taylor[holding answer 28 November 1995]:In 1970, the restrictive practices court exempted medicaments from the general prohibition on resale price maintenance. The exemption can only be ended by the court. The Director General of Fair Trading has a duty to monitor and regularly review existing goods exempted from the prohibition. The Office of Fair Trading's current review is to establish whether there is a prima facie evidence of material change in the relevant circumstances since the exemption was granted. If the DGFT concluded that there was a material change of circumstances he could apply to the court to seek leave for review of the exemption. It would be premature to speculate about the DGFT's conclusions.
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