Following last month’s ministerial changes, it has now been confirmed that Dame Diana Johnson DBE has taken on responsibility for pharmacy at the Department of Health and Social Care.
Dame Diana (MP for Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham) has become Minister of State for Public Health and Patient Safety. Dame Diana’s role includes the pharmacy portfolio alongside general practice, health inequalities and neighbourhood health.
Dame Diana moved from the Department for Work and Pensions and has held previous government roles in the Home Office, the Department for Children, Schools and Families, and HM Treasury. In opposition, Dame Diana spent time on the Health and Social Care Committee and indicated her support for community pharmacy, having attended some of Community Pharmacy England’s Parliamentary events.
Janet Morrison, chief executive of Community Pharmacy England, said: “We congratulate Dame Diana Johnson on her appointment as Minister of State for Public Health and Patient Safety and welcome her new responsibility for community pharmacy. We look forward to working closely with her and the wider ministerial team to help unlock the full potential of community pharmacy.
“Dame Diana has previously shown support for the sector, and we are keen to build on that interest. We hope to continue the constructive dialogue established with the outgoing minister, focusing on securing a sustainable future for the sector, addressing ongoing financial pressures, and enabling community pharmacies to make an even greater contribution to the Government’s ambitions for improving access to care, prevention and neighbourhood health services.”
Malcolm Harrison, chief executive of the Company’s Chemists Association, said: “We welcome the appointment of Dame Diana Johnson as the Minister responsible for community pharmacy.
“She will find in community pharmacy a willing partner to help tackle many of the challenges the NHS currently faces.
“The sector is key to delivering greater preventative care in the community, but further funding and additional investment is required to close the funding gap and commission more clinical care through community pharmacy”.
Responding to the appointment, Henry Gregg, chief executive of the National Pharmacy Association, said: "We are very much looking forward to working with Dame Diana who is a friend of pharmacy who has supported important funding campaigns and petitions warning about the problems of pharmacy closures in the past.
"She knows what a positive contribution pharmacies make to public health, patients and local economies. Although the government has made strides towards ending a decade of neglect in pharmacy there is so much more to do to unleash their potential to improve health outcomes, tackle inequalities and improve local economies while easing pressure on the rest of the NHS.
"We stand ready to meet her as soon as possible to explain the tremendous value our members can offer in helping people live healthier, happier and more prosperous lives."