As the Member of Parliament for Leicester East, I have called on the Government to take urgent action to protect community pharmacies, which are facing immense financial and operational pressures. I was drawn for a Westminster Hall debate and was honoured to join colleagues from across the House to discuss this vital topic.
Our local pharmacies are a vital part of primary care. They provide elderly residents with immediate advice, help families access medicines and offer vulnerable people essential healthcare close to home, often without the need for a GP appointment.
However, the pharmacy network is under serious strain. Between 2016 and 2026, England lost approximately 1,000 pharmacies, an eight per cent reduction. In Leicester East, the number has fallen from 32 to 29, representing a nine per cent reduction locally.
Every closure matters. It can mean longer journeys for elderly and frail patients, increased queues at remaining pharmacies and additional pressure on already overstretched GP surgeries.
Independent pharmacy owners are also facing severe financial challenges. Pharmacies must purchase medicines upfront but may have to wait two or three months for NHS reimbursement. Reimbursement calculations can also assume that pharmacies benefit from substantial bulk-buying discounts, even though many small businesses cannot access them.
Research from the Independent Pharmacies Association suggests that a pharmacy dispensing around 10,000 items a month could face a shortfall of approximately £56,000 compared with the level needed to keep pace with inflation.
These pressures are compounded by rising operating costs, including employer National Insurance contributions, the National Living Wage and business rates. Unlike many other NHS premises, community pharmacies do not receive equivalent business-rates relief, despite delivering essential frontline healthcare.
Pharmacies provide much more than dispensing prescriptions. They deliver medicines to housebound patients, administer vaccinations, carry out blood-pressure checks and support preventative healthcare. I welcome the expansion of these services, but they must be properly funded. Additional responsibilities cannot simply be placed on pharmacies without providing the resources required to deliver them safely and sustainably.
Staffing pressures are equally concerning. Figures from the Pharmacy Pressures Survey show that 60 per cent of pharmacy teams have experienced staffing shortages, while more than 80 per cent have reported longer patient waiting times.
Temporary closures are also becoming more common. Pharmacies are being forced to close for hours or even days because they cannot secure a qualified pharmacist. Freedom of Information data collected by Healthwatch found almost 14,000 temporary closures across England in a single year, resulting in more than 46,000 lost hours of care.
The Company Chemists’ Association estimates that England could face a shortfall of 16,000 community pharmacists by 2036. While it is positive that pharmacists have been recruited into GP practices through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme, we must ensure that this does not strip high-street pharmacies of the staff they need to remain open.
The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan must give sufficient priority to community pharmacy. Expanded training targets and independent-prescribing qualifications provide opportunities to expand clinical care on our high streets. Recent changes allowing pharmacy technicians to supply specified medicines and deliver services under Pharmacy First could also free up valuable pharmacist time.
There has been some positive movement. The Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework settlement for 2026/27 secured £3.636 billion for the sector, a £340 million increase on the previous year. The roll-out of Pharmacy First has also demonstrated the appetite for accessible, community-based care. More than 10,900 pharmacies are participating, delivering millions of consultations for conditions including earache, shingles and minor infections.
This is effective frontline triage. It helps reduce pressure on A&E departments and GP surgeries while giving patients faster access to advice and treatment.
However, recent funding increases must be viewed as a first step, not a final solution. Community Pharmacy England and the National Pharmacy Association have both warned that structural underfunding remains a serious problem. The Health and Social Care Select Committee has described the current funding model as unfit for purpose and overly complex.
Many clinical services depend on referrals from GPs or hospitals. This can leave independent pharmacy owners reliant on administrative systems over which they have no control. Pharmacies may be fully staffed and ready to treat patients, yet receive no referrals because a local surgery is not using the system effectively. That is not sustainable.
As a Conservative, I believe in supporting small businesses, encouraging enterprise and removing unnecessary administrative barriers. High-street pharmacies are independent providers delivering frontline public healthcare efficiently and locally. Yet fixed tariffs, rising business costs and employment taxes are placing their future at risk.
I have therefore asked the Minister to act in four areas. Drug reimbursement should be reformed so that payments reflect the prices independent pharmacies actually pay. Core funding must be predictable and fair. Business rates and the impact of employer National Insurance contributions should be reviewed. Workforce planning must also protect the staffing needs of community pharmacies.
If we want pharmacies to continue delivering preventative care, expanding Pharmacy First and reducing pressure on GP surgeries, we must protect the network that makes these services possible. Supporting community pharmacies is not only about helping small businesses; it is about protecting accessible healthcare for patients in Leicester East and across the country.
I am grateful to the Minister and to colleagues from all sides of the House for joining me in this discussion, and I look forward to continuing conversations about improving these important frontline services in the future.
