The Misuse of Drugs (Amendment No. 3) Regulations 2006

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001 (“the 2001 Regulations) to correct defects in the amendments made to those Regulations by the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment No. 2) Regulations 2006 (“the 2006 Regulations”). The 2006 Regulations introduced requirements that all private prescriptions containing controlled drugs in Schedules 1, 2 or 3 to the 2001 Regulations must be issued on a standard form which includes the prescriber identification number of the person issuing it, and that all such prescriptions must be submitted to the relevant National Health agency after the drug has been supplied. The 2006 Regulations omitted however to exclude veterinary prescriptions from these requirements and regulations 3, 4 and 6(2) of these Regulations amend the 2001 Regulations to make the necessary exclusions. Regulation 4 comes into force in Wales on 1st January 2007 as this is the date on which the relevant amendments in the 2006 Regulations also come into force in Wales.

Regulations 5 and 6 amend regulations 16(2) and 23 of the 2001 Regulations, which contain requirements relating to the retention of private prescriptions, to remove from these requirements prescriptions (other than veterinary prescriptions) containing controlled drugs in Schedules 1, 2 or 3 to the 2001 Regulations.

Regulation 7 amends the commencement date in regulation 2(2) of the 2006 Regulations so that regulations 7(1) and 10 of those Regulations will come into force on 1st January 2008.