The Government has NO idea how many drugs have been stockpiled to prepare for a No Deal Brexit, damning report reveals
- Department of Health asked for six weeks’ worth of drugs in case of No Deal
- But as of September 20, suppliers only reported 72% of medicine product lines
- National Audit Office also found increased freight capacity may not be ready
The Government is clueless about how many drugs have been stockpiled in the event of a No Deal Brexit, a damning report has revealed.
The National Audit Office reviewed the Department of Health and Social Care’s (DHSC) preparations for crashing out of the bloc on October 31.
With just five weeks to go, the NAO said there were still ‘risks’ as the DHSC lacks full information about levels of stockpiling.
While it has asked pharmaceutical suppliers to build up six weeks’ supplies of medicines coming from the EU, it has ‘incomplete information’ about the levels of stockpiling, the report said.
As of September 20, suppliers reported just 72 per cent of medicine product lines had at least six weeks’ stockpiles built.
The NAO also found additional freight capacity for shipping priority goods across the Channel may not be fully available until the end November.
And it said the DHSC did not know how many nursing homes and other social care providers had followed its advice on planning for a No Deal scenario.
‘The department has done a great deal of work to prepare for a No Deal exit,’ the NAO said. ‘However, there remains a significant amount to do before October 31.
‘In the event of a No Deal exit, the department would be working in a highly uncertain environment and operating all the elements of its plan would be a hugely demanding task.’
Meg Hillier, the chair of the Commons Public Accounts Committee which examines the work of the NAO, said the findings were ‘deeply concerning’.
‘I’ve seen countless examples of deadlines missed and Government failing,’ she said. ‘If Government gets this wrong, it could have the gravest of consequences.’
Pharma giants are in the dark about how medicine will be transported into the UK in the event of a No Deal Brexit, industry leaders have warned ahead of the October 31 exit date (stock)
Of the 12,300 drugs used in the UK, the DHSC estimates that around 7,000 come from, or via, the EU – with the vast majority being shipped across the Channel.
The Government’s own ‘reasonable worst case’ assumption is that the flow of goods across the Channel could be reduced to 40-60 per cent on day one.
The DHSC estimates that, by the end of March 202,0 it will have spent more than £87million in securing continued supplies.
Meanwhile, the Department for Transport (DfT) has been allocated £150million to procure additional freight capacity – mainly for health and social care needs.
The DHSC said it needs the equivalent of 2,326 additional HGV spaces a week to be ready for a No Deal Brexit.
But the NAO claims time is ‘extremely limited’ if the shipping was all to be ready in time.
The DfT has said that it aims to have ‘as much as possible’ by October 31, although it may not come fully on stream until the end of November.
The DHSC, meanwhile, is setting up its own courier service for transporting particularly urgent goods.
However, testing is not due to start until October 24, although the department has said it is expected to be ready for service from November 1.
The DHSC is also renting warehouse space for manufacturers to stockpile medicines and materials for clinical suppliers, with capacity for 48,000 pallets.
From border chaos to drug shortages: The doomsday warnings about a no-deal Brexit
THE M20 TURNING INTO A ‘GIANT LORRY PARK’
One of the most vivid warnings about no-deal is that a 13-mile stretch of the M20 could become a giant lorry park for years.
Some 10,000 freight vehicles pass through Dover daily, and the port handles one-sixth of the UK’s total trade in goods.
But imposing checks on them could cause massive tailbacks on both sides of the Channel, and spark shortages.
Britons could also need insurance for Channel Tunnel disruption if there is no-deal Brexit, the government warned today.
Guidance on rail says the government is still struggling to agree ‘mutual recognition’ with the EU to avoid disruption to services such as the Eurostar should there be no deal by March.
MEDICINE SHORTAGES
Contingency plans have been put in place to fly in medical supplies as the NHS braces for six months of chaos if the UK crashes out of the EU.
Crucial supplies could also be diverted to ports away from the Channel, and some drugs may even be rationed.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock has revealed the NHS is laying out on huge numbers of refrigeration units to try and keep supplied usable.
BLACKOUTS IN NORTHERN IRELAND
Northern Ireland faces the threat of electricity blackouts if the UK crashes out of the European Union without a deal.
Negotiators are trying to secure an agreement with Brussels that the current single electricity market would remain intact even if exit talks collapse.
But if the pledge was not secured, customers on both sides of the border could be hit.
The single electricity market involves ‘significant’ flows of power between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
Government technical papers said there was a ‘risk’ that the single electricity market ‘may not be able to continue’.
If that happens, the Northern Ireland Utility Regulator, an energy watchdog, will ‘take action to seek to ensure continued security of supply and market stability’, they warned.
MARKET PANIC
Bank of England governor Mark Carney set out one of the most blood-curdling outcomes – while making clear it was a worst case.
He suggested the size of the economy could plunge by 8 per cent in less than a year – further and faster than the financial crisis of 2008.
At the same time, the unemployment rate would rise 7.5 per cent, meaning hundreds of thousands losing their jobs.
Inflation would surge 6.5 per cent, sending prices in the shops surging House prices could plunge 30 per cent, while commercial property prices are set to fall 48 per cent.
The pound would fall by 25 per cent to less than parity against both the US dollar and the euro.
Additional freight capacity had been secured for 25 per cent of medicine product lines.
The NAO also expressed concern that, with 24,000 social care providers in England alone, the DHSC did know how many had followed its advice on preparing to deal with any ‘disruption’.
The head of the NAO Gareth Davies said the Civil Service had faced an ‘unprecedented challenge’ in preparing for Brexit ‘in the midst of great uncertainty’.
‘In this report I record the progress made by the DHSC, working with others, to secure continuity of supply for both the health and social care sectors should the UK depart without a deal with the EU on October 31,’ he said.
‘In doing so, I am obliged to point out the work that still needs to be done and the risks that remain.’
The DHSC said ‘substantial’ stockpiles of medicines had been built up and that they were ‘increasing by the day’.
‘We want to reassure patients we are doing everything necessary to make sure they can access the medicines they need after Brexit on October 31,’ a spokesman said.
‘Combined with other measures, including new transport routes coming online shortly, we can help ensure patients continue to receive the highest quality of care in the same way they do now.’
Royal College of Physicians (RCP) registar Professor Donal O’Donoghue said it was ‘impossible’ to reassure patients their health will not be negatively impacted by No Deal.
He said: ‘One thing is clear about a no-deal Brexit and that is that no amount of preparation can fully eradicate the risks it presents to patient safety and protecting the nation’s health.
‘Yes, the NHS has done a great deal of preparation and planning but the Royal College of Physicians shares the National Audit Office’s concerns that putting plans into action will be extremely demanding.
‘On that basis, it is impossible for me and my colleagues to reassure patients that their health and care won’t be negatively impacted by the UK leaving the EU without a deal.’
Nuffield Trust’s Brexit Programme Lead Mark Dayan said: ‘Today’s report lays bare the DHSC’s frantic work to prepare the health service for the disruption of a no-deal Brexit.
‘But the gaps it shows underline that this may be an impossible task in the short time available.
‘There is reassurance that stockpiling is proceeding rapidly, at least for medicines. 91 per cent of products had been stockpiled before the last Brexit date, although 9 per cent missing is still too high.
‘But it is very troubling that suppliers have found new routes into the UK for only 25 per cent of medicines.
‘The strategy is dependent on medicines still getting in: otherwise the six-week stockpile will simply run out over the months of delays anticipated.
‘We must remember that NHS trusts need services like laundry and food as well. There is little here to reassure us that they are ready for shortages or supplier failure.’
Jonathan Ashworth, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, said the report was ‘scandalous’.
He added: ‘Here we have another body warning of the devastating impact a no deal Brexit could have on the NHS.
‘From the supply of medicines and patient access to care, to the impact on the health workforce: no part of the health service will be left untouched.
‘It is scandalous that by stubbornly refusing to rule out No Deal, Boris Johnson is putting patient’s health and lives at risk.’
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