§ Lord Hunt of Kings Heathasked Her Majesty's Government:
When they will publish the results of their consultation on the statutory regulation of herbal medicine and acupuncture; and [HL4578]
Whether their final proposals for the statutory regulation of herbal medicine and acupuncture recognise traditional Chinese medicine as a distinct discipline on an equal standing to herbal medicine and acupuncture and with a separate register. [HL4579]
§ Lord WarnerOn 2 March we published proposals for the statutory regulation of herbal medicine and acupuncture practitioners. The consultation period closed on 7 June. An analysis of the responses to the consultation will be published in the autumn. We plan to publish draft legislation for further consultation in 2005.
We recognise that many practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine use both herbal medicine and acupuncture. Decisions about any new system of statutory regulation will therefore need to take account of their particular needs.