Originally published August 6 2005
British politician calls for stiffer penalties for fake drug makers
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
A British politician has called for harsher penalties for the makers of fake drugs after fake stashes of Lipitor were recently discovered.
AN Ulster politician yesterday called for stiffer sentences for people involved in manufacturing fake drugs.
The Rev Dr Robert Coulter MLA, Ulster Unionist health spokesman in the last Assembly, urged the action as it emerged the National Health Service (NHS) has recalled thousands of packets of cholesterol-lowering drugs after counterfeit pills were discovered.
"The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is contacting all pharmacies across the country to alert them to withdraw the fake boxes of Lipitor, the world's best-selling medicine.
"Custom officers have confirmed they had intercepted fake pills in Rotterdam in May, leading to the MHRA recalling a batch of 120,000 Lipitor 20mg tablets bearing the number 004405K1, found to contain another statin that is not available in Britain," explained Dr Coulter.
"Across the world, up to 10% of all medicines are fake according to the World Health Organisation.
"Most counterfeits, which are often very difficult to trace, are found to come from China, India and Eastern Europe, with not only organised crime but also terrorist organisations reaping the profits," he added.
"There are massive opportunities to sell fake drugs over the Internet.
"It is the fastest growing crime area of the 21st century.
Although the profits are comparable to the trafficking in hard drugs such as cocaine and heroin, the punishments remain much smaller.
"Parallel trading, where medicines are bought from another EU country and sold in Britain at a profit, is thought to be responsible for breaches in the supply.
"We need to have tougher sentences for all medicine trafficking which are on a par with those handed down for drugs dealing and trafficking.
"We must have a major international policing accord on tracking down the supply lines of these fakes."
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