asked the Minister of Health whether he will now announce the composition and terms of reference of the advisory committee on drug addiction.

I hope an announcement will be made soon.

Can the Minister say why there has been such a long delay between the presentation of the Report of the Brain Committee and any action by his Ministry?

Yes, Sir. A great deal of preparatory study and consultation between Government Departments and the professional and other bodies concerned is involved. I am pressing ahead in conjuction with my right hon. Friends the Secretary of State for Scotland and the Home Secretary, and I am anxious that the committee should be set up and should start work as soon as possible.

Will my right hon. Friend consider including in the terms of reference the over-prescription of drugs by medical practitioners to registered addicts? The amounts of these which are reaching the market are increasing. They are much cheaper on the black market to young people than they have been hitherto. More and more are becoming addicted, and this is becoming a graver social problem.

I am sure that this problem will be within the ambit of the work of the committee when it is set up.

Is drug addiction in this country as great as it has been made out to be in certain recent sensational Press articles?

Without knowing the articles to which the hon. Member refers it is difficult to say. It is a serious problem and there is evidence that it has been increasing.