Thousands of pharmacies face closure in £170m funding cut

Up to a quarter of pharmacies will close as ministers slash funding in order to limit the number on each high street, The Times reports.

Local pharmacies rely on the NHS for 90 per cent of their income, receiving an average of £220,000, mainly through fees for handling prescriptions.

Ministers will impose a £170m cut for high street stores in October.

Doctors said that the decision was extremely short-sighted and could deprive vulnerable patients of a trusted source of health advice.

Warning after drugs stolen from Coatbridge pharmacy

Police have warned that drugs stolen from a pharmacy in North Lanarkshire could have "fatal consequences" if taken without medical supervision, the BBC reports.

A "substantial quantity" of the drugs was taken from Mint Pharmacy, Calder Street, Whifflet, Coatbridge. The theft, in the early hours of Tuesday morning, included Fentanyl, Oxycodone, Tapentadol and Morphine.

Police said the haul also included Methylphenidate, Temazepam, Suboxin, Daclatasvir and Sofosbuvir.

Pharmacy loses around £1,300 of stock from theft

Items from a pharmacy store worth around £1,300 were stolen from a pharmacy in Chatteris, Peterborough Today reports.

Cambridgeshire police officers have released a CCTV image of a woman they would like to speak to in connection with the theft.

The incident took place at about 9.10am on January 9 at Lloyds Pharmacy in High Street, Chatteris.

A woman wearing glasses in a green parka coat with a black and white scarf is seen taking approximately 80 items including hair products, blood pressure monitors, face creams and anti-smoking products and putting them into her bags.

GP surgeries will not return to Marlborough House

The two GP surgeries and pharmacy will not be returning to Marlborough House when it eventually reopens, the Hastings and St Leonards Observer reports.

The Carisbrooke and Warrior Square surgeries and Warrior Pharmacy moved to what was thought to be temporary sites after the fire in July, 2013.

But due to consistent delays and concerns over the building’s safety, the surgeries and pharmacy will be looking for permanent accommodation.

Project manager Mike Edwards said: “The initial expectations were of a likely short term relocation requirement, but as time has progressed and problems with reinstatement have come to light, timescales have inexorably lengthened with estimates of completion dates having been repeatedly extended and unmet.”

Alliance Pharmaceuticals Ltd appoints Karim Husny as Head of International Business

Karim Husny has joined Alliance Pharmaceuticals as Head of International Business, to support all Alliance brands, including MacuShield, a nutritional supplement for eye health, recently acquired by the company.

Karim will be based in Paris and brings with him a wealth of experience in growing healthcare businesses.

Karim has excellent international Over the Counter (OTC) and Consumer Healthcare experience and has an impressive record with a number of major European companies including Laboratoire de la Mer and latterly Omega Pharma where he was Director of CEE and Export Worldwide.

NHS 111 phone line will undergo 'fundamental' reform, Jeremy Hunt promises

The NHS 111 phone line service will undergo “fundamental” reform in the wake of a report into an unnecessary death of a child, the Independent has reported.

William Mead, from Cornwall, died of Sepsis after NHS 111 failed to diagnose his condition.

The 111 service was rolled out by the Coalition government by early 2014 to replace the NHS Direct phone line.