Jhoots Pharmacies could lose NHS rights, MPs told

There are more than 150 Jhoots Pharmacies across England

The government has warned pharmacies could lose rights to dispense NHS prescriptions following a series of complaints.

Services at Jhoots Pharmacies are "falling well below the mark", Health and Social Care Minister Stephen Kinnock told the House of Commons.

More than 150 English pharmacies operate under the Jhoots brand, but there have been repeated cases of branches closing on some days and staff wages being delayed, MPs were told.

Ownership of the pharmacies is split between brothers Manjit and Sarbjit Jhooty. A spokesman for Manjit Jhooty said the problems did not apply to his 21 branches.

The minister was responding to an urgent question from West Dorset MP Edward Morello, who said thousands of people had been left without access to essential medicines.

"Jhoots staff have gone months without pay, despite payslips being issued, tax deductions made and pension contributions not deposited," the Liberal Democrat MP added.

Health minister Stephen Kinnock said the behaviour of some pharmacies was "utterly unacceptable"

Mr Kinnock replied: "It is completely and utterly unacceptable if a business such as Jhoots is not paying its staff."

He said both the General Pharmaceutical Council and NHS integrated care boards were taking regulatory action against individual pharmacies, which could be struck off.

Dr Luke Evans, the Shadow Health and Social Care Minister, said: "Across the country, communities have been left without functioning pharmacies - doors locked without notice, patients arriving to find no pharmacist, no prescriptions, no stock."

Several other MPs expressed concerns for Jhoots employees and NHS patients.

Labour MP Melanie Onn said five staff at a pharmacy in Grimsby had not been paid since July.

Another Labour MP, Lizzie Collinge, said people in Sedbergh, Cumbria, faced a 40-minute drive to an alternative chemist.

A spokesman for Manjit Jhooty said his Walsall-based firms Jhoots Healthcare Ltd and Pasab Ltd had never delayed wages or closed pharmacies due to mismanagement.

He said: "The pharmacies that my businesses operate are all fully solvent, functional and continue to provide important services and professional support to their local communities and that is not going to change."

Previously, Sarbjit Jhooty, who runs more than 120 of the stores through Jhoots Pharmacy Ltd, acknowledged "workforce and recruitment challenges", telling the BBC he was working to address the issues.