§ Mr. HurstTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what are the terms of his referral to the Office of Fair Trading of the cost of drugs to the National Health Service; and if he will make a statement. [109438]
§ Ms StuartThe matter concerns the supply of generic drugs to the National Health Service. The whole basis of the current arrangements for generic supply is competition in the market place. In the light of disruption to the market last year, we were concerned to establish whether any suppliers of generics were misusing their market power; whether exploitation of the reimbursement system was taking place; and whether there was any implicit or explicit collusion to bring about price rises or shortages. The Office of Fair Trading is carrying out an investigation to see if there has been any contravention of United Kingdom competition law.