New pharmacy minister appointed
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Neil O’Brien OBE MP has been appointed as the new minister with responsibility for pharmacy in the Department for Health & Social Care (DHSC). He takes over the position of Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Patient Safety and Primary Care from Will Quince MP, who remains at the Department but takes on a different brief.
Following the latest reshuffle, the DHSC has reorganised its Ministerial briefs. Mr O’Brien has a wide-ranging portfolio of responsibilities including primary care, community health, major diseases, patient safety, maternity care, inquiries, cosmetic regulation, gender identity services, blood transplants & organ donation and fertility & embryology.
Mr O’Brien has been the Conservative MP for Harborough since 2017 and was previously a Special Advisor to Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne from 2012 to 2016, and Theresa May during her tenure as Prime Minister. He co-founded the think tank Onward.
PSNC Chief Executive Janet Morrison said:
‘’We would like to congratulate and welcome the new minister to his post. We look forward to meeting with him at the earliest opportunity to continue our vital discussions on the very serious challenges facing the sector. We will also want to explore further the very valuable wider role that community pharmacy could play within primary care, with the right funding settlement and support.’’
