Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:47 pm on 3 July 2018.
I'm really concerned that you have no plan for a 'no deal' Brexit, First Minister. They are planning for this in England. You should be planning for this here in Wales. Now, I know that we both want to see our NHS weather the Brexit storm. You are in a position to do something about it, though. I don't have faith in Westminster to ensure a steady hand on the tiller. 'No deal' needs planning, and that planning needs to start now, for the sake of patients and for staff.
One of the most startling revelations relates to our access to medicines, post Brexit. Thirty-seven million patient packets of medicines are imported into the UK from the EU every single month. Now, in a 'no deal' scenario, there is no guarantee about a single one of those packs. Medicines regulation is not a devolved matter, and NHS England has confirmed that they are preparing to stockpile medicines made outside the UK for English patients. That's what planning does.
First Minister, are there specific Welsh contingency plans, or are you going to leave it up to the Department of health in Whitehall to ensure that Welsh patients can access the treatments that they need post Brexit?