"Evidence Check: Homeopathy" in UK parliament

[Mojo]

http://www.parliament.uk/parliamenta...n05_091020.cfm

The new Science and Technology Committee has been asked by the government to consider the evidence for homoeopathy, and is asking for "short submissions":

In preparation for the establishment of the Science and Technology Committee on 1 October, the former IUSS Committee commissioned work to assess the Government's use of evidence in policy-making. The Committee wrote to the Government on a number of topics and asked two questions: (1) What is the policy? (2) On what evidence is the policy based? The Government has now replied and having considered the responses the Committee has selected Homeopathy for its second Evidence Check. (The Government's response will be made available soon.)

The Committee invites short submissions by Friday 6 November on the following issues:

- Government policy on licensing of homeopathic products

- Government policy on the funding of homeopathy through the NHS

- the evidence base on homeopathic products and services.

Contact details and guidelines for submissions are available via the link.

[Blue Wode]

Heads up:

Homeopathy session on BBC Parliament tomorrow 9.30am or watch online at http://www.parliamentlive.tv/Main/Pl...meetingId=5221

Thatcher Room
Meeting starts on Wednesday 25 November at 9.30am

Evidence Check: Homeopathy
Witnesses

1. Professor Jayne Lawrence, Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain, Robert Wilson, British Association of Homeopathic Manufacturers, Paul Bennett, Boots, Tracey Brown, Sense About Science, and Dr Ben Goldacre, The Guardian
2. Dr Peter Fisher, Royal London Homeopathic Hospital, Professor Edzard Ernst, Complementary Medicine Group, Peninsula Medical School, Dr James Thallon, NHS West Kent, and Dr Robert Mathie, British Homeopathic Association

[Blue Wode]

Bump. 10 minutes to go.

[Blue Wode]

Live commentary from the Guardian: Homeopathy: MPs on science and technology committee grill experts...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/bl...logy-committee

Streamed here: http://www.parliamentlive.tv/Main/Pl...meetingId=5221

The participants:

9.30am
Professor Jayne Lawrence, chief scientific adviser, Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain
Robert Wilson, chairman of the British Association of Homeopathic
Manufacturers, and Nelsons, a homeopathy company
Paul Bennett, professional standards director, Boots the chemist
Tracey Brown, managing director, Sense About Science
Dr Ben Goldacre, journalist, The Guardian

10.30am
Dr Peter Fisher, director of research, Royal London Homeopathic Hospital
Professor Edzard Ernst, director, Complementary Medicine Group, Peninsula Medical School
Dr James Thallon, medical director, NHS West Kent
Dr Robert Mathie, research development adviser, British Homeopathic
Association

There will be a transcript available of the proceedings by the end of the week.

[Blue Wode]

So, in a nutshell...

11.22am: And there we have it.
Boots sells homeopathy despite having no evidence that it works, the homeopaths want more research and think Nobel prizes await because it overturns accepted science, and the scientists themselves think there's no evidence of it working whatsoever. A £1.5bn industry none the less. Extraordinary.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/bl...logy-committee

[Admin]

There will be a transcript available of the proceedings by the end of the week.

I missed the programme but I look forward to reading the transcript.

[Blue Wode]

For anyone who missed it, the session can still be viewed here (1hr 51mins):
http://www.parliamentlive.tv/Main/Pl...meetingId=5221

NB. Next session:

Monday 30 November 2009
4.15pm:

Mike O'Brien QC MP, Minister for Health Services, Department of Health;
Professor David Harper, Director General, Health Improvement and Protection, and Chief Scientist, Department of Health;
Professor Kent Woods, Chief Executive, Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency

See foot of page here:
http://www.parliament.uk/parliamenta...hy_inquiry.cfm

[Admin]

For anyone who missed it, the session can still be viewed here (1hr 51mins):
http://www.parliamentlive.tv/Main/Pl...meetingId=5221

I've watched half of it so far. If anyone's interested in this issue it's worth watching.

I wrote about this issue 3 years ago: http://www.ukskeptics.com/commentary...ay.php?d=09-06

I'm glad to see that the concerns I raised back then are pretty much the same as what the evidence committee are focusing on today.

They should have saved time and just asked me.

[skbuncks]

I've watched half of it so far. If anyone's interested in this issue it's worth watching...

I'll second that, watched it 'live'. Cheers to Blue Wode for reminding us about it

skb

[asthmatic camel]

Funniest thing I've watched in a long while. If you're short of time, scroll forwards to 01:32:20 to watch Dr. Fisher questioned about homeopathy and succussion.

[Blue Wode]

Everyone's written evidence to parliamentary scitech committee on homeopathy:
http://www.publications.parliament.u...y/contents.htm

CONTENTS: Evidence Check: Homeopathy

Memorandum submitted by the Department of Health HO 00
Memorandum submitted by the Dental Practitioners Association HO 01
Memorandum submitted by Professor David Colquhoun H2
Memorandum submitted by John Boulderstone HO 03
Memorandum submitted by Dr Lionel R Milgrom HO 04
Memorandum submitted by Katherine Boulderstone HO 05
Memorandum submitted by Professor John C McLachlan HO 06
Memorandum submitted by the UK Advisory Committee on Malaria Prevention in UK Travellers (ACMP) HO 07
Memorandum submitted by Cyril W. Smith HO 08
Memorandum submitted by the Northern Ireland Association of Homeopaths (NIAH) HO 09
Memorandum submitted by Les Rose HO 10
Memorandum submitted by Dr Andy Lewis HO 11
Memorandum submitted by The British Homeopathic Association HO 12
Memorandum submitted by Jean Kinchen HO 13
Memorandum submitted by Professor Harald Walach and Professor George Lewith HO 14
Memorandum submitted by the Leeds Institute of Diagnostics and Therapeutics, University of Leeds HO 15
Memorandum submitted by Edzard Ernst HO 16
Memorandum submitted by Anne Waters HO 17
Memorandum submitted by the European Committee for Homeopathic Medicine in Europe HO 18
Memorandum submitted by Professor Vincent Marks HO 19
Memorandum submitted by Dr Jean Monro and Dr Peter Julu HO 20
Supplementary memorandum submitted by Dr Jean Monro and Dr Peter Julu HO 20a
Memorandum submitted by Dr Peter Fisher HO 21
Memorandum submitted by Dr Sara Eames HO 22
Memorandum submitted by the Society of Homeopaths HO23
Memorandum submitted by the Complementary Medicine Research Group, University of York HO 24
Memorandum submitted by Francis Treuherz HO 25
Memorandum submitted by the Homeopathy Research Institute HO 26
Memorandum submitted by the Alliance of Registered Homeopaths (ARH) HO 27
Memorandum submitted by the Arthritis Research Campaign HO 28
Memorandum submitted by Dr Hugh J Nielsen HO 29
Memorandum submitted by the British Association of Homeopathic Manufacturers HO 30
Memorandum submitted by the Liga Medicorum Homoeopathica Internationalis (LMHI) HO 31
Memorandum submitted by Dr Clare Relton HO 32
Memorandum submitted by Homeopathy: Medicine for the 21st Century (H:MC21) HO 33
Memorandum submitted by the Department of Health HO 34
Memorandum submitted by the European Central Council of Homeopaths HO 35
Memorandum submitted by Sense About Science HO36
Memorandum submitted by Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain HO 37
Memorandum submitted by Judith Ford HO 38
Memorandum submitted by the West Kent NHS HO 39
Memorandum submitted by Dr Ben Goldacre HO 40
Memorandum submitted by the Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health HO 41
Memorandum submitted by the Science Council HO 42
Memorandum submitted by Jackie Rowe HO 43
Memorandum submitted by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) HO 44
Annexes submitted by the Advertising Standards Authority (HO44a
Memorandum submitted by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) HO 45

[chaggle]

Where is all this going? What's the point of it? If this committee finds that Homeopathy is a useless crock what will happen? Anybody know?

[Mojo]

I missed the programme but I look forward to reading the transcript.

Uncorrected transcript of Wednesday's session.

[asthmatic camel]

Where is all this going? What's the point of it? If this committee finds that Homeopathy is a useless crock what will happen? Anybody know?

I'd imagine that the best we can hope for is clearer labelling, indicating that the products have not been proven to work. Maybe the likes of Boot's would stop selling them, and NHS doctors stop prescribing them. Maybe.

[polomint38]

I'd imagine that the best we can hope for is clearer labelling, indicating that the products have not been proven to work. Maybe the likes of Boot's would stop selling them, and NHS doctors stop prescribing them. Maybe.

Maybe not