§ Mr. Nicholas WintertonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the availability of the latest generation of medicines to those who suffer mental illness. [53011]
§ Jacqui SmithThere has been a consistent increase in the numbers of prescriptions for atypical antipsychotic drugs over the past five years. In 1997 atypical antipsychotic prescription items dispensed in the community in England accounted for 257,000 or 6.2 per cent. of the total of 4,157,000 prescription items for all antipsychotics. In 2001 the figures were 1,842,000 or 39 per cent. out of 4,718,000.