Former Chief Minister Richard Corkill says he didn’t realise keeping details of his application to run a pharmacy secret was against government regulations.

He will now have to wait while the Department of Health and Social Security reconsiders his application to go on the Island’s list of chemists.

A court has overturned the DHSS approval after hearing a rival company in Onchan was denied access to the application.

Maleys, trading as Lloyds Pharmacy, said without the document it couldn’t properly decide whether to object to the chemist on Main Road.

Jason Roberts reports (text, below, from attached audio file):

Maleys said it had always been given the relevant documents in the past, but Mr Corkill had asked the DHSS not to reveal details he claimed were commercially sensitive.

The company then took the DHSS to court, where Deemster Kerruish said the refusal to hand over the information had been against established practice and regulations.

He quashed the original decision but said the department, not Mr Corkill, had been at fault.

Mr Corkill will now have to wait while the DHSS decides whether he can dispense NHS prescriptions.

In the meantime, his pharmacy remains open and his business is unaffected pending the decision.