UK pharma abandons RPM on OTCs case

Resale Price Maintenance on over-the-counter medicines came to an endin the UK on May 15, after the Community Pharmacy Action Group, which includes the Proprietary Association of Great Britain, withdrew its opposition to the case brought in the Restrictive Practices Court by the Office of Fair Trading seeking the abolition of OTCs' unique 30-year-old exemption from the UK's ban on the practice (Marketletters passim).

Ahead of the move, Mr Justice Buckley had said there was insufficient proof to support the CPAG's claim that the abolition of RPM would lead to the closure of community pharmacies and reduce the range of OTC products. Having heard most of the evidence put forward by the respondents, the court's preliminary view was that it was difficult to see how retention of OTCs' exemption could be argued successfully, he said.

John Vickers, Director General of Fair Trading, said this was "excellent news for consumers, who will now benefit from lower and more competitive prices for common household medicines. After 30 years, retailers will be able to set their own prices competitively," he said, and consumers will save "many millions of pounds a year." However, the CPAG's chairman, David Sharpe, warned that many pharmacies will simply not be able to survive now, given the "buying power and aggressive pricing tactics of the supermarkets."