We support ministers in leading the nation’s health and social care to help people live more independent, healthier lives for longer.
The Committee is holding an inquiry into what is needed from the NHS estate to deliver the Government’s vision of …
Oral Answers to Questions is a regularly scheduled appearance where the Secretary of State and junior minister will answer at the Dispatch Box questions from backbench MPs
Other Commons Chamber appearances can be:Westminster Hall debates are performed in response to backbench MPs or e-petitions asking for a Minister to address a detailed issue
Written Statements are made when a current event is not sufficiently significant to require an Oral Statement, but the House is required to be informed.
Department of Health and Social Care does not have Bills currently before Parliament
A Bill to make provision about the supply of tobacco, vapes and other products, including provision prohibiting the sale of tobacco to people born on or after 1 January 2009 and provision about the licensing of retail sales and the registration of retailers; to enable product and information requirements to be imposed in connection with tobacco, vapes and other products; to control the advertising and promotion of tobacco, vapes and other products; and to make provision about smoke-free places, vape-free places and heated tobacco-free places.
This Bill received Royal Assent on 29th April 2026 and was enacted into law.
A Bill to Make provision about the prioritisation of graduates from medical schools in the United Kingdom and certain other persons for places on medical training programmes.
This Bill received Royal Assent on 5th March 2026 and was enacted into law.
A Bill to make provision to amend the Mental Health Act 1983 in relation to mentally disordered persons; and for connected purposes.
This Bill received Royal Assent on 18th December 2025 and was enacted into law.
e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.
If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.
If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).
Remove power to cancel local government elections
Change the law to remove the power of the Secretary of State to cancel any further forthcoming local government, metropolitan borough, London borough or any other elections, for example, but not limited to, those due in May 2026.
Appoint a Maternity Commissioner to improve maternity care for mums and babies
Sign this petition Gov Responded - 28 Jan 2026 Debated on - 20 Apr 2026A 2024 parliamentary birth trauma inquiry recommended a Maternity Commissioner be appointed alongside a National Maternity Strategy to ensure mums and their babies were safe and looked after with professionalism and compassion.
Funding so all infants are offered Type 1 Diabetes Testing in routine care
Gov Responded - 17 Jul 2025 Debated on - 9 Mar 2026Fund mandatory offer of testing for Type 1 Diabetes in babies, toddlers, and young children as a routine part of medical assessments at the point of care.
Commons Select Committees are a formally established cross-party group of backbench MPs tasked with holding a Government department to account.
At any time there will be number of ongoing investigations into the work of the Department, or issues which fall within the oversight of the Department. Witnesses can be summoned from within the Government and outside to assist in these inquiries.
Select Committee findings are reported to the Commons, printed, and published on the Parliament website. The government then usually has 60 days to reply to the committee's recommendations.
It is a priority for the Government to increase the amount of time people spend in good health and prevent premature deaths. Our 10-Year Health Plan for England sets out a reimagined service designed to tackle inequalities in both access and outcomes, including our ambitious commitment to halve the healthy life expectancy gap between the richest and poorest regions.
NHS England has launched a Maternity and Neonatal Equalities dashboard that brings together key information to address health inequalities in maternity and neonatal care services from a range of data sources, with breakdowns by ethnicity and deprivation to make health inequalities visible, measurable, and actionable in maternity and neonatal services.
NHS England is implementing a new anti-discrimination programme, which aims to ensure all service users and their families will receive care free from discrimination and racism, and all staff will experience a work environment free from discrimination and racism. All trusts are expected to have completed the programme by 2027.
We have legislated to modernise the Mental Health Act to strengthen choice, autonomy and rights, and ensure people are treated with dignity and respect. The Government is also committed to delivering the cross-sector Suicide Prevention Strategy for England (2023 to 2028), including its ambition to improve evidence and better understand national trends and suicide rates in particular groups, including people who are Gypsy, Roma or Travellers.
The Government and NHS England have announced a three-year Neighbourhood Early Diagnosis Fund as part of £200 million investment for Cancer Alliances to tackle inequalities in screening and early diagnosis in deprived and underserved areas. Core20PLUS5 also includes early cancer diagnosis as a priority area for accelerated improvement.
The Department recognises inequalities exist across the cardiovascular disease (CVD) pathway. The Department and NHS England are working together to develop a CVD Modern Service Framework which will support, evidence-led consistent, high quality and equitable care.
The Department recognises the importance of ensuring that effective, evidence-based support is available for young people with mental health needs who present a risk of serious violence.
The Department has not made a separate or specific assessment of the effectiveness of talking therapies for the highly specific cohort described. However, there is strong evidence that talking-therapy-based interventions, including cognitive behavioural therapy, are effective in improving mental health outcomes for children and young people. In the first 12 months of the Government, nearly 40,000 more children and young people received mental health support compared to the previous 12 months. We are also rolling out Mental Health Support Teams in schools and colleges in England to reach full national coverage by 2029.
Where someone has a mental disorder and there is a risk of harm to themselves or others, the triaging of their need will result in prioritised access to assessment and treatment. If a person with a mental disorder is seen as a significant risk of violence to others, this would increase the priority given. NHS England has shared new draft guidance with systems, the Mental Health Personalised Care Framework, which sets out how services must effectively assess, plan, and manage people's care in collaboration with all relevant teams, including how they assess safety and risks of harm.
St Andrew’s site in Northampton provides care for a complex mix of patients on both an inpatient and outpatient basis. The decision by NHS England relates to inpatients at St Andrew’s Northampton site only. It is important to note that Care Quality Commission enforcement against St Andrew’s meant that no new patients have been admitted to the inpatient unit at Northampton for some time.
Of the inpatients at St Andrew’s Northampton site, the majority are adult secure commissioned patients. Many of these patients are subject to Ministry of Justice restrictions. The decision will mean limitation upon the number of available adult secure beds in Northamptonshire, however alternative placements are being sought for patients in the region as well as in surrounding areas. The majority of other patients in St Andrew’s, Northamptonshire are patients placed by integrated care boards (ICB) into other core mental health services provided by St Andrew’s.
NHS England is working with all placing commissioners, including Northamptonshire ICB, the East Midlands provider collaboratives and local providers, asking them to identify and transfer patients to alternative placements (within the community, other health or detained settings) in line with clinical need and informed by patient and family wishes. This approach is being informed by available capacity, impact across services and enabling the identification of specific additional requirements. This is a live situation; therefore, the assessment and response are evolving. An Ethics Framework has been used to guide decision making recognising that there are a range of risks which need to be carefully balanced. Recognising the wider health and economic context for the county, Northamptonshire ICB have also convened a local system response forum to ensure that local partners are informed and engaged.
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More than one in three women, compared to one in five men, will experience a fracture due to osteoporosis in their lifetime.
Our 10-Year Health Plan committed to rolling out Fracture Liaison Services across every part of the country by 2030. Integrated care boards remain well-placed to make decisions according to local need. The Renewed Women’s Health Strategy sets an expectation that integrated care boards prioritise community-based models when commissioning new fracture prevention services. Where available, evidence on the potential impacts on gender inequality will be taken into consideration in future policy development.
More broadly, the Renewed Women’s Health Strategy sets out a bold, long‑term plan to transform how the health and care system listens to, supports, and delivers for women and girls. It puts women’s voices and choices at the centre of care, drives faster improvements in services and outcomes that matter most to women, and tackles long‑standing health inequalities across the life course. The strategy aligns with the 10-Year Health Plan to shift care into the community, harness digital innovation, and strengthen prevention so women can live healthier, more fulfilled lives.
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The failings exposed at St Andrew’s Hospital in Northampton site are completely unacceptable. The accounts of poor care, patient harm, and sustained risks to vulnerable people are deeply distressing, and the safety and wellbeing of patients remains our foremost priority throughout this process.
NHS England has required commissioners to begin identifying alternative inpatient placements for patients at St Andrew’s Hospital in Northampton following ongoing concerns about patient safety. Transfers are being managed carefully and in phases, based on individual clinical assessments, and patients will only move when a suitable alternative placement has been identified that can safely meet their needs. Enhanced clinical oversight has been put in place at the site, and NHS England is working closely with placing commissioners and provider networks to ensure transfers prioritise patient safety, continuity of care and compliance with the Mental Health Act where applicable.
We recognise that many patients at St Andrew’s will have limited capacity to advocate for themselves. Their voices, and those of their families and representatives, must be central to this process. Enhanced advocacy provision is already in place, and patient communications including accessible and Easy Read formats are being developed to support understanding and reduce anxiety.
After discussing with the NHS, a patient’s placing commissioner will talk with them to explain the options being considered for the best place for them to go next. They will listen to each patient’s preferences and feed these back to the NHS so they can be taken into account when making plans. Advanced advocacy support for patients is also in place. However, the final decision will also depend on the care needs of each patient and what services are available.
Where a patient is receiving care in an adult secure service, decisions will also need to consider risk and any requirements from the Ministry of Justice that may apply. These factors help the team decide the most appropriate place for ongoing care.
The failings exposed at St Andrew’s Hospital in Northampton site are completely unacceptable. The accounts of poor care, patient harm, and sustained risks to vulnerable people are deeply distressing, and the safety and wellbeing of patients remains our foremost priority throughout this process.
NHS England has required commissioners to begin identifying alternative inpatient placements for patients at St Andrew’s Hospital in Northampton following ongoing concerns about patient safety. Transfers are being managed carefully and in phases, based on individual clinical assessments, and patients will only move when a suitable alternative placement has been identified that can safely meet their needs. Enhanced clinical oversight has been put in place at the site, and NHS England is working closely with placing commissioners and provider networks to ensure transfers prioritise patient safety, continuity of care and compliance with the Mental Health Act where applicable.
We recognise that many patients at St Andrew’s will have limited capacity to advocate for themselves. Their voices, and those of their families and representatives, must be central to this process. Enhanced advocacy provision is already in place, and patient communications including accessible and Easy Read formats are being developed to support understanding and reduce anxiety.
After discussing with the NHS, a patient’s placing commissioner will talk with them to explain the options being considered for the best place for them to go next. They will listen to each patient’s preferences and feed these back to the NHS so they can be taken into account when making plans. Advanced advocacy support for patients is also in place. However, the final decision will also depend on the care needs of each patient and what services are available.
Where a patient is receiving care in an adult secure service, decisions will also need to consider risk and any requirements from the Ministry of Justice that may apply. These factors help the team decide the most appropriate place for ongoing care.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 29 April 2026 to Question 113872.
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It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
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It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
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It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
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It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
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It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
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