MP calls for warning symbols on medicines
Labour member of Parliament Andrew Dismore (Hendon) has launched a 10-Minute
Rule bill to establish a system of prominently displayed warning symbols on the packaging of medicines that can impair driving and mechanical ability.
Mr Dismore believes that the present system detailing content and dangers
is vague, complex and misleading.
He said: “At the moment, information on packets can be complex
and obscure. My bill would ensure that people can have no doubt that
drugs which act on the brain and central nervous system can dangerously
affect the ability to drive or operate machinery.”
He is proposing marking such medicines with a red triangle which can
be instantly recognised and understood by consumers, along similar lines
to packaging policy in some European countries.
“It would allow people to make an informed choice,” he added. “Most
people are not necessarily aware of what they can and cannot do and sometimes
the advice given on packages is confusing. If, for example, a warning
says that a drug can make you drowsy it is not always clear that means
you should not drive.”
Ten-Minute Rule bills rarely become law unless they gain Government support. |
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