Drug firm accused of cheating NHS

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Even though Gaviscon came off patent almost a decade ago, the remedy still dominates the NHS market.

The BBC's Newsnight programme has obtained internal documents from Hull-based manufacturer Reckitt Benckiser, which it says show that executives created obstacles to block rivals from selling cheap generic copies.

But the firm said it was a responsible company and "did not accept much of what was alleged".

A former senior executive said Reckitt had "cheated the NHS" and could have saved it "millions of pounds", according to Newsnight.

The programme was told Reckitt sold Gaviscon to the NHS for three times the cost of generic drugs.

Executives also boasted that they had influenced regulatory bodies to delay the introduction of a generic name for Gaviscon by objecting between 2000 and 2006 on health and safety grounds.

According to Newsnight, one Reckitt executive wrote: "Should we not drag it out as long as possible...nine million pounds of business is at stake."

In a statement, Reckitt Benckiser said: "We are shocked by the allegations made in the press, and by the inappropriate sentiment expressed in some of the internal correspondence of 2003.

"Reckitt Benckiser is a responsible company in the way it conducts its business, and we have therefore instigated an immediate internal investigation, and will take action. However, we do not accept much of what has been alleged, which implies a power or patent access we simply do not possess."