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Department of Health

I think that the hon. Gentleman is right. What will happen once the funding structure changes and what the impact will be on the availability of certain drugs are important issues to consider. Reference has already been made to the shift to cheaper generic drugs and the practice of drugs bought in other EU countries being repackaged and relabelled through parallel trading. In both cases, I understand that while the medication itself remains the same—I have discussed the matter with an hon. Friend who is a pharmacist—excipients such as additives for colour might change or vary in the medication. That can cause unfortunate side effects, particularly in the case of epilepsy drugs.