This site is intended for Healthcare Professionals only

Campaign to secure your future – update

NPA Essential bookmark icon off

Campaign to secure your future – update

Latest situation

NPA chairman on Support Your Local Pharmacy campaign activity

Despite the silence from the Department of Health, we are not taking anything for granted. The delayed announcement does not necessarily signify a change in position by DH officials or NHS England, so we cannot afford to relax our efforts.

We have forced the government to revise its timetables and to reconsider key planks of its original programme. At the same time, we have built up the support base necessary to sustain an ongoing fight to change the direction of government policy.

We do not intend to squander this position by sitting back, crossing our fingers and trusting to fate. On the contrary, we have developed new campaign tools to help pharmacists re-engage with local MPs over the parliamentary summer recess.

The national pharmacy bodies are briefing patient groups, journalists and politicians, gathering compelling evidence of the true value of community pharmacy and articulating an alternative programme for the future of pharmacy.

Plans are also well advanced for a high-profile pharmacy presence at political party conferences this autumn. Representations are continuing at a local level too, and we are starting to see local patient groups get engaged. Meanwhile, NPA members have been briefing local councillors, who in turn are writing to ministers.

We are urging our members to do the following things over the summer:

  • Continue to lobby for a change in the direction of government policy
  • Examine your numbers and review your wider business affairs, to make sure you are fit for the future
  • Stay close to your trade association. There are undoubtedly challenging times ahead, but united within the NPA, independents can come through the other side resilient and strong.

Please stay active in the campaign. Use the ‘Email Your MP’ tool to communicate with your MP by email and social media. It is available via the supportyourlocalpharmacy.org website. You can also keep up to date with the latest campaign developments at npa.co.uk/step-forward.

Copy Link copy link button

NPA Essential

Share: