The General Pharmaceutical Council is proposing to raise its yearly registration and renewal fees for pharmacy premises from £262 to £365 – an increase of 39 per cent.

The GPhC is consulting on the proposals from January 7 to March 31, with stakeholders encouraged to share their views on the GPhC website. If the GPhC council decides to adopt the new fees rules at its June meeting, they will be effective from October 2020.

Outlining the proposals, the regulator said it had arrived at the £365 figure by assessing the cost of regulating each pharmacy premises in 2018-19. It said the proposed increase of £103 would ensure pharmacy owners are not underpaying for the cost of regulating premises, a situation it said was “not sustainable”.

Carrying out inspections, “strategic relationship management” and associated head office costs were some of the regulatory activities cited.

GPhC chief Duncan Rudkin said: “We recognise the financial pressures that pharmacy owners are under and any uplift in fees is only proposed when necessary.

“We are proposing this change now because we need a robust and sustainable financial framework with fees that reflect the true cost of regulation.”

The GPhC said it had commissioned a report from consultancy firm EY, which found that while the pharmacy sector is “showing some financial fragility” the impact of the proposed changes would be “very small”.

This is the first phase of a consultation exploring the GPhC’s fees strategy. Registration and renewal fees for pharmacists and pharmacy technicians are not affected by the current proposals, but will be considered in the longer term.

NPA ‘cannot support’ increase

The National Pharmacy Association came out against the proposals. A spokesperson commented: “GPhC is proposing to levy a big percentage increase at a time when community pharmacy finances are already under immense pressure. We cannot possibly support such a steep increase in fees for pharmacy regulation.

“GPhC says it needs to cover its costs, however pharmacy contractors are bound to ask if the regulator is working as hard as pharmacies themselves to deliver efficiencies.”