Ministers exploring ‘strengthened’ pharmacy regulation after ‘troubling’ Jhoots reports

Jhoots pharmacies risk being ‘struck from the pharmaceutical register’ due to serious regulatory breaches, social care minister Stephen Kinnick has told the House of Commons.

The urgent debate on Wednesday heard local MPs describe numerous reports of Jhoots branches allegedly closing, not paying their employees for months, and forcing patients to travel long distances for essential medication.

Mr Kinnock said the situation was is ‘completely and utterly unacceptable’ and that standards had fallen ‘well below the mark’.

He said both the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) and integrated care boards (ICBs) were taking regulatory action against individual pharmacies and supporting patients with access to medicines.

This issue has also highlighted a gap when it comes to regulating pharmacy business owners, Mr Kinnock said.

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Government officials are exploring, as a matter of urgency, whether they can ‘strengthen the regulatory framework to be able to deal more quickly with pharmacies that do not play by the rules’.

‘We are looking at the role of the General Pharmaceutical Council and what is taking place with ICBs taking contract action,’ said Mr Kinnock.

‘Where there is no sign of improvement and pharmacies continue to be in breach, the next escalation is to strike them off the pharmaceutical register, which takes some time, because certain pharmacies… are trying every single thing they can to appeal, push back and stop the actions that we are seeking to take, which is elongating the process.

‘However, I want to be clear: if there is clear breach and action is not taken to remedy that breach, pharmacies will be struck off the pharmaceutical register.’

Last weekend, NPA chief executive Henry Gregg said he was concerned the failures of Jhoots would damage the reputation of community pharmacy and the sector’s ability to secure adequate funding in the 2025/26 funding settlement.

Mr Kinnock responded during the debate: ‘I do not see any reason why the overall funding settlement for pharmacy should be undermined, and we will continue to protect community pharmacy as a crucially important part of our NHS.’

Several other MPs expressed their concerns about Jhoots’ staff and patients. Devon MP Richard Foord said that pharmacy staff in his constituency had resorted to ‘begging for their wages’.

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North Norfolk MP Steff Aquarone described how one resident found themselves ‘standing in the rain outside a closed pharmacy, fearful they would end up in A&E’ after they were sent to Jhoots for emergency antibiotics by NHS 111.

And Simon Hoare, MP for North Dorset, worried about a lack of support for pharmacists ‘picking up the slack’.

Chairman of Numark, Harry McQuillan, said in response to the debate: ‘The recent reports concerning Jhoots Pharmacy are deeply troubling, for patients left without access to vital medicines, and for the pharmacy teams whose livelihoods and professional reputations are caught up in the headlines.

‘This situation must not become the story of community pharmacy in England. It must instead be a wake-up call for policymakers to take a hard look at the sustainability of the sector and its partners across the supply chain.’

The NPA responded that it was ‘worrying and distressing’ to hear these reports, particularly given the immense financial pressure the sector is facing and the extraordinary lengths some contractors are going to, to remain open.

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‘We should be careful not to add further burdens on the many pharmacies who take their responsibilities very seriously despite the significant financial crisis that they face,’ the NPA added.

Director of policy and communications at the Pharmacists’ Defence Association (PDA) said: ‘It is essential that pharmacists have a voice at the table, and the PDA will work with the minister and the Department [of Health and Social Care] constructively in the interests of patients, communities, the NHS and our members.’

Jhoots has been contacted for comment.