Pharmacy leaders have panned the government's response to the all-party pharmacy group's (APPG) stock shortages report, after pharmacy minister Earl Howe said the current approach was "working well".

Lloydspharmacy chief Andy Murdock said he was disappointed the minister was not able to demonstrate any progress had been made over the six months since the APPG's report was published.

Stephen Fishwick of Pharmacy Voice told C+D he had expected the government to take "immediate action".

But instead Earl Howe rejected most of the APPG's recommendations and reiterated that he was "not aware" of the shortages causing patient harm.

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	At a meeting with the APPG at Westminster on Tuesday, Earl Howe rejected recommendations; including for government sanctions on non-compliance with supply chain best-practice guidance; that the government could learn from France's recent proposals to curtail the export of medicines; and that the MHRA needed to improve the enforcement of wholesaler dealers' licences.

But he added that the government was looking at whether quota arrangements could be made "simpler, less burdensome for pharmacists and more transparent" and Parallel exporting was not solely to blame for shortages as there was a "variety of causes", as the APPG suggested.

"We're keen for pharmacy representatives to provide examples of best-practice suppliers so that we can build on the best current arrangements to simplify current arrangements," he said.

Celesio UK external relations and policy director Mr Murdock said he hoped Earl Howe's promise on quotas "bears fruit".

"It is vitally important that medicines supply and dispensing arrangements are effective and efficient, and I'm on precisely the same page as the all-party pharmacy group," Earl Howe added.

"It is my view that the current collaborative approach to medicines supply is working well."

Earl Howe told the meeting he was "not convinced" that the MHRA needed to improve its enforcement of wholesaler dealers' licence obligations, as he insisted the medicines watchdog was "far from idle".

"I think if we were to make a conscious policy to limit the number of licences, that would risk reducing supply options for pharmacists," Earl Howe explained.

He said there was "no compelling evidence that arrangements adopted in other countries work better than our own". And he insisted the number of medicines on PSNC's shortage list had been "reduced slowly".

"Departmental sanctions" would not be the appropriate way to ensure best-practice guidelines were followed, he added.

"The APPG recommendation for monitoring compliance with the obligation to supply medicines to pharmacies directly within 24 hours is the most directly relevant of all the measures proposed – a patient's distress would be very much reduced if he or she knew the supply was no more than a day away," Mr Fishwick told C+D.

Dave Sharp, contractor at Doncaster's D & R Sharp Chemists, said the government needed to take action because he was "constantly on the phone badgering people and chasing them for stock".

We're continually looking for stock [and] everything seems to be aimed at stopping the independents and small multiples from sourcing [medicines] easily," Mr Sharp said.

British Association of Pharmaceutical Wholesalers (BAPW) executive director Martin Sawer said he felt the APPG inquiry had focused government attention on "key areas for improvement".

Earl Howe declined the APPG's suggestion of another meeting in six months' time to discuss progress. "Well, maybe we can exchange letters in six months' time," he replied.