Morrisons issue statement over prescription row

"We stand by the actions of our pharmacist who was dispensing this medicine to a patient in need, and had to be sure he was giving the correct dosage."The customer actually went to a different pharmacy first, and they did not carry this medicine. We were asked by that store during a phone call to help by supplying the medicine instead.

"Our pharmacist was told during this phone conversation that it was half in Welsh and half in English. Without seeing the original prescription, he could not judge whether he could translate it, so he asked for a translation to ensure he could be clear of the exact instructions. It is vital that any drug is dispensed correctly.

"This translation followed within approximately two hours of the customer arriving at the first pharmacy - by fax to us.

"When the customer arrived at our store (for the first time) the medicine was dispensed as prescribed.

"At no stage did we turn the customer away, or refuse to dispense the prescription, and we strongly refute this accusation.

"We fully support the use of the Welsh language, and use dual language signage in our stores. Where medicines are concerned however, we are not prepared to take the chance of making a mistake and we hope all customers will understand that."