TOP Tory New Forest West MP Desmond Swayne has been slammed by an all-party parliamentary group on his response to the issue of addiction to prescription drugs in Hampshire.

Doctors have been accused of ignoring prescribing and withdrawal guidelines for addictive tranquilisers by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Involuntary Tranquiliser Addiction (APPG) after the Journal revealed that tens of thousands of prescriptions were handed out in Hampshire in the last year.

The Journal learned that benzodiazepines, better known as tranquillisers such as valium and temazepam, have been prescribed 133,541 times for a range of conditions including anxiety, insomnia, some forms of epilepsy and palliative care in Hampshire after we approached the NHS West Hampshire Clinical Commissioning Group.

There are no withdrawal services available to patients and the APPG revealed that just one patient had been successfully treated to withdraw from tranquiliser use in 2013.

Mr Swayne, minister of state at the department for international development, told the Journal last week that “NHS guidelines are important but GPs know their patients best”. Strict guidelines about the prescribing of benzodiazepine tranquillisers were issued to all GPs in 1988, warning them that the drugs are known to cause dependence if used beyond the recommended four-week maximum.

APPG, which was set up to raise awareness of involuntary tranquilliser addiction and lobby for support from health service providers, local authorities and government, said NHS guidelines should be enforced.

APPG co-ordinator John Perrott said: “The APPG position is that the 1.5 million patients have become addicted because doctors have not followed the 1988 CSM two to four-week prescribing guidelines.

“The guidelines were issued for patient safety because the drugs are highly addictive and have prolonged and severe withdrawal symptoms. There is no enforcement of these guidelines.

“Also, there are no withdrawal services nationally to help these patients. They are not substance misusers and have become addicted through no fault of their own.”

Mr Swayne said: “These are matters best left to clinicians rather than politicians, however many meetings of the APPG they may have attended.”