A statutory panel to review provisional determinations by the Medicines Control Agency that something is a medicinal product is to be formed.
In addition to considering written and oral representations by companies against MCA provisional determinations, the panel, which is to be appointed by the Government Ministers who make up the licensing authority, will advise Ministers on whether products are, or are not, medicines as defined in legislation.
Papers and proceedings of the panel will be confidential, but its advice will be published.
To be considered for appointment, potential members of the panel have to be recognised by their peers as eminent members of their professions and have wide and recent experience of medicine, pharmacy, herbal or complementary medicine, nutritional therapy or food science, the cosmetics industry or public health and consumer affairs.