PHARMACIES IN CRISIS AFTER LABOUR'S TAX RAID

Alarm sounded after more than 650 pharmacies closed their doors last year

-  DAVID WILLIAMSON and GILES SHELDRICK

LABOUR'S high street tax grab will hurt patients as more pharmacies are driven out of business, the Chancellor is warned.

More than 650 closed in England and Wales last year, and many others could follow amid hikes in business rates and employers' national insurance contributions.

Leyla Hannbeck of the Independent Pharmacies Association said: "If closures continue at this pace patient access to essential services will be severely undermined.

"Community pharmacies are local, often family-run businesses that form the backbone of our high streets and neighbourhood healthcare. They are where people go for vaccinations, support for minor illnesses, prescriptions, and trusted advice from a healthcare professional they know, often with access to care seven days a week.