Dear constituent,

Thank you for contacting me about support for community pharmacies.

Primary care is the bedrock of our NHS. The selfless dedication of pharmacists in our constituency and across the country is remarkable. I pay tribute to pharmacy teams in the community and in hospital settings for the critical work they do to protect the health of the public and support the wider NHS.

I recognise concerns raised by the All-Party Pharmacy Group (APPG), the National Pharmacy Association and others about the funding and workforce challenges facing the community pharmacy sector.

Despite the additional demand for services, there has been no increase in funding for the pharmacy network since 2014, and there have been cuts of around £200 million since 2016. The current Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework was agreed in 2019, yet it has not been adjusted despite the pandemic, and I am concerned that the Government has failed to adapt. This has resulted in pharmacies being unable to meaningfully invest in staff and has been detrimental to infrastructure development as well as innovation.

Workforce shortages are a significant concern, with the vacancy rate doubling over the past four years to 8%. While the Home Office has added pharmacists to its ‘shortage occupation list’ - making it easier for pharmacy teams to attract overseas workers to fill vacancies - I do not believe this is a long-term or sustainable solution.

Among its recommendations to the Government, the APPG asks Ministers to empower pharmacists to do more by providing additional resources for training and to boost the pharmacy workforce. I know in 2021 the APPG launched a separate inquiry bringing together views of the healthcare community on how to unlock the potential of pharmacy to do more to support patients and the wider NHS post-COVID-19.

Pharmacies are an essential part of our health service and their work is more important now than ever. They have been on the frontline vaccinating against COVID-19 and ensuring everyone gets the medicines and healthcare advice they need. The Government must recognise their critical role in our communities, address workforce shortages and ensure they are properly resourced to provide quality care and support to patients.

Thank you once again for contacting me about this issue.

Yours sincerely,

Peter Dowd MP