Regulators

GPhC writes to pharmacy teams after methotrexate dispensed with instruction to take once daily

An email sent by Roz Gittins, chief pharmacy officer at the GPhC, advised pharmacy teams to supply methotrexate in line with a drug safety update published by the MHRA in September 2020.…

Regulator consults on pharmacist standards following new legislation

The General Pharmaceutical Council’s consultation sets out what the accountabilities and responsibilities of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians would be if they were authorised to carry out certain tasks.…

Medicine approval times in Europe to be cut by almost 15%

The Council of the European Union said that planned changes to European pharmaceutical legislation will also help streamline procedures to quicken supply chains.…

Autumn 2025 registration assessment pass rate higher than previous year

According to data from the General Pharmaceutical Council, the pass rate for the November 2025 sitting of the registration exam was 62% — up from 58% in 2024.…

First supervision change to be introduced in January 2026

Pharmacists will be able to authorise pharmacy technicians to give patients checked and bagged prescriptions from 7 January 2026, the General Pharmaceutical Council has announced.…

Health news round-up: haematology, mental health and pharmacogenomics

A weekly summary of important developments in health news that you may have missed.…

GPhC receives ‘highest ever recorded’ number of concerns

The majority of the concerns received by the General Pharmaceutical Council in the second quarter of 2025/2026 related to customer service issues and dispensing errors.…

Regulator appoints clinical fellow to understand attainment gap within pharmacy education

As the new Scottish clinical leadership pharmacy fellow, Niketa Platt will work with the GPhC’s equality, diversity and inclusion team to gauge which factors may hinder differential attainment in pharmacy.…

Medicines commission calls for greater clarity on risk of suicidal behaviour from antidepressants

The Commission on Human Medicines said wording in antidepressant patient information leaflets should be “strengthened” on the risk of suicidal behaviour.…

Pharmacy regulator chief executive joins from police watchdog

Kathie Cashell will take up the post in March 2026 to take forward the General Pharmaceutical Council’s new strategic plan for 2025–2030.…