Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to invite independent economic and clinical reviewers to assess revisions to the prostate cancer screening model before a final recommendation is made by the UK National Screening Committee.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government has made it clear that it would like to see screening in place for prostate cancer where it is supported by the evidence.

The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) consulted on their draft recommendation regarding prostate cancer screening which was based on a model commissioned from Sheffield Centre for Health and Related Research (SCHARR). SCHARR included expert economists and clinicians in workshops throughout the model’s development. The UK NSC ran a series of workshops with economists, academics, and clinicians to examine the model’s structure, evidence, assumptions, and conclusions. It also ran a 12-week public consultation on their draft recommendation and evidence package. Upon request, York Health Economics Consortium were given access to the underpinning model and York, as well as Prostate Cancer Research who funded York’s work, have submitted findings to the consultation. Updates have been made on the basis of comments which have been shared with experts. These findings will be considered alongside the other submissions to the consultation before UK NSC make a final recommendation based on the current evidence base.

The model will be maintained and interrogated as new evidence becomes available. The UK NSC is committed to keeping prostate cancer screening under review.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to extend the current review period for prostate cancer screening to allow consideration of updated modelling that reflects contemporary NHS clinical practices.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The UK National Screening Committee’s consultation on their draft recommendation regarding prostate cancer screening was based on a model commissioned from Sheffield Centre for Health and Related Research. The model used contemporary National Health Service clinical practices including mpMRI following a prostate specific antigen test. There is therefore no need to extend the review period.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the use of AI and assistive technologies in adult social care and elderly support services, in particular its impact on improving independence and quality of life for older people.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Artificial intelligence (AI) and assistive technologies can support people to live high-quality, independent lives for longer. Such technologies are already being used across adult social care by care providers and local authorities to enable more preventative and personalised care, save staff time, and improve care coordination.

To help assess the use of technologies in adult social care, the Government has funded testing and evaluation of technologies in social care, including AI-enabled technologies, through the Adult Social Care Technology Fund. Emerging evidence indicates positive outcomes for people in receipt of care, care professionals, and the wider health and social care system. People using technology experienced greater independence, safety, wellbeing, and quality of life. We will publish the findings from these projects.

The Government is committed to supporting safe and appropriate adoption of technologies in social care. We are setting new national standards for care technologies and producing trusted guidance, so that people can confidently buy and use technology which support them or the people they care for. To support appropriate use of AI in adult social care, we have published guidance for care providers on AI use cases and tips for safe and responsible use. We will be setting out the Government’s strategic approach to AI in adult social care, alongside its approach to AI in health, through the National AI Roadmap. We have also launched the Adult Social Care Assessments Improvement Toolkit to help local authorities find digital and AI-enabled tools to improve services and the quality-of-care delivery.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what has been the cost to his Department of assessing claims under the Vaccine Damage Payments Scheme in each of the last four years for which information is available.

Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to take steps to ensure that AI-based mental health tools do not replace access to human-delivered psychological support where this is clinically appropriate.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is clear that artificial intelligence (AI) based tools must not replace access to human‑delivered psychological support where this is clinically appropriate.

Digital and AI tools can be used to support mental health services and those in need of those services, for example by helping with administrative tasks, triage, or appointment management, and these benefits can enable clinicians to spend more time delivering direct care. However, decisions about treatment and care must always be clinically led and based on individual patient need.

Publicly available AI applications that are not deployed by the National Health Service, such as ChatGPT or Google Gemini, are not regulated as medical technologies and may offer incorrect or harmful information. People experiencing mental health difficulties are strongly encouraged to seek support from qualified professionals through NHS services or trusted charities.

Spending across mental health services, both specialised commissioning and ICB combined, and including learning disability, autism, and dementia, is planned to increase to £20.616 billion in 2025/26, compared to £18.988 billion in 2024/25. Specific funding has also been allocated to expand mental health support in schools to 100% of institutions by 2029/30.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what role AI-based mental health tools are expected to have within NHS mental health services.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government is clear that artificial intelligence (AI) based mental health tools are intended to support and complement, not replace, National Health Service mental health services.

Within NHS mental health services, AI based tools are expected to play a supporting role, for example by helping with administrative tasks such as appointment management, triage support, and updating clinical records, enabling clinicians to spend more time delivering direct, person‑centred care. AI may also support evidence‑based digital interventions, such as digitally enabled therapies, where these are clinically appropriate and have been properly evaluated.

The Government is clear that AI based tools must not replace access to trained mental health professionals, particularly for people experiencing acute distress. Publicly available AI applications that are not deployed by the NHS, such as ChatGPT or Google Gemini, are not regulated as medical technologies and may offer incorrect or harmful information, and people experiencing mental health difficulties are strongly encouraged to seek support from qualified professionals through NHS services or trusted charities.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Early Access to Medicines Scheme in facilitating patient access to new treatments for neuromuscular diseases.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) supports access to treatments for people living with neuromuscular diseases. The majority of neuromuscular diseases are defined as rare diseases. On the 2 November 2025, the MHRA published a policy paper on rare therapies and United Kingdom regulatory considerations, which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rare-therapies-and-uk-regulatory-considerations/rare-therapies-and-uk-regulatory-considerations

The Early Access to Medicines Scheme (EAMS), is an existing pathway across the regulatory and access system designed to support innovative treatments being available to patients earlier in the development cycle, outside of a clinical trial. This includes for those living with neuromuscular diseases. The Government is collaborating across the regulatory system to continuously review the effectiveness of these pathways for rare diseases. Further information on the EAMS is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-the-early-access-to-medicines-scheme-eams

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when digital prescriptions will be available in all NHS hospitals.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS England does not have a target date for digital prescription availability in all National Health Service hospitals. The NHS Digital Maturity Assessment 2025 showed that 93% of NHS hospital trusts have gone live with an electronic prescribing and medicines administration system. The 2026 Digital Maturity Assessment will provide the latest data later this year.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department has spent on external consultants for the ongoing reorganisation of the NHS since 2024.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of commissioning controls, including Indicative Activity Plans, on access to children’s ADHD and autism assessments.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Patients have a legal Right to Choose their provider when referred for National Health Service funded eligible care.

In 2023, NHS England published National framework and operational guidance for autism assessment services aimed at supporting those in commissioning roles during their commissioning cycles and operational guidance to support and inform decision-making at service level. These two guidance documents are available, respectively, at the following two links:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/autism-diagnosis-and-operational-guidance/

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/operational-guidance-to-deliver-improved-outcomes-in-all-age-autism-assessment-pathways-guidance-for-integrated-care-boards/

Integrated care boards are responsible for ensuring that their processes comply with the legal Right to Choose.

NHS England is aware that commissioning controls on levels of assessment activity have been set by some commissioners and is working with systems to develop a supporting document to the NHS Payment Scheme 2026/27 statutory consultation to help identify the costs associated with undertaking autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessments. This aims to help guide the pricing and create a more equitable and consistent approach to the autism and ADHD assessment payment process. NHS England published the NHS Standard Contract which requires integrated care boards (ICBs) to agree indicative activity plans (IAPs) for any service area which is variably funded, to aid in planning and capacity and demand management. IAPs are planning tools which do not restrict activity carried out by a provider.

The NHS Medium Term Planning Framework requires ICBs to undertake thorough demand and capacity planning and to strategically commission services that meet the needs of their patient population. ICBs may need to prioritise certain areas of care for their patient population, which may include managing planned assessment activity in some areas through Activity Management Plans.

My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced on 4 December 2025 the launch of an Independent Review into Prevalence and Support for Mental Health Conditions, ADHD and Autism. This independent review will inform our new approach to mental health, so people receive the right support, at the right time and in the right place. Likewise, the review will inform our approach so that people with ADHD and autistic people have the right support in place to enable them to live well in their communities.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of Shared Care Agreements for patients prescribed ADHD medication by an independent sector provider under a) NHS Right to Choose and b) privately funded arrangements.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Shared care within the National Health Service refers to a voluntary arrangement whereby a specialist may transfer responsibility for aspects of a patient’s care, such as prescription of medication, to the patient’s general practitioner (GP). Decisions regarding shared care agreements are made locally, and the General Medical Council has made it clear that GPs are not contractually obliged to enter shared care agreements and may decline requests on clinical or capacity grounds.

No specific assessment has been made of the effectiveness of shared care agreements with independent sector providers for patients prescribed attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medication.

NHS England established an ADHD taskforce bringing together people with lived experience with experts from across sectors to better understand the challenges in accessing timely and equitable support.

In addition, on 4 December 2025 my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced an independent review into the prevalence and support for mental health conditions, ADHD, and autism, which will inform our approach to ensuring appropriate support is in place.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the pausing of Shared Care Agreements for ADHD on patients.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Shared care within the National Health Service refers to a voluntary arrangement whereby a specialist may transfer responsibility for aspects of a patient’s care, such as prescription of medication, to the patient’s general practitioner (GP). Decisions regarding shared care agreements are made locally, and the General Medical Council has made it clear that GPs are not contractually obliged to enter shared care agreements and may decline requests on clinical or capacity grounds.

No specific assessment has been made of the effectiveness of shared care agreements with independent sector providers for patients prescribed attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medication.

NHS England established an ADHD taskforce bringing together people with lived experience with experts from across sectors to better understand the challenges in accessing timely and equitable support.

In addition, on 4 December 2025 my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced an independent review into the prevalence and support for mental health conditions, ADHD, and autism, which will inform our approach to ensuring appropriate support is in place.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support the availability of Peer Supported Open Dialogue in the NHS.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

There is no national policy specifically focused on implementing Peer Supported Open Dialogue.

The National Health Service follows evidence when implementing any approach at scale and will respond to any future changes in National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance. A research trial evaluating the impact of open dialogue in the NHS is due to report soon, at the following link:

https://www.ucl.ac.uk/brain-sciences/pals/research/clinical-educational-and-health-psychology/research-groups/oddessi/oddessi-trial

Nationally, we are committed to working with local NHS mental health providers to develop a new approach for mental health in 2026, including through the upcoming modern service framework for severe mental illness.

The Department is also supporting the development of the evidence base on mental health care through research and evaluation, including studies funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research, to inform future decisions on effective models of care.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment has been made on the relationship between ADHD and Substance Use Disorders.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Studies have shown that people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at increased risk of alcohol use disorder. One study found that impulsive decision making was causal, and that ADHD was present in up to 20% of people seeking treatment for alcohol use disorder. The recently published Clinical Guidelines for Alcohol Treatment set out several steps that treatment providers should take to assist those with ADHD to access alcohol treatment and tailor treatment interventions, including discussing and making reasonable adjustments based on each person's individual needs, offering flexibility, providing information in the most appropriate way, and collaborative personalised care plans.

It is the responsibility of integrated care boards in England to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including providing access to ADHD assessment and support, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.

NHS England established an ADHD Taskforce which brought together those with lived experience with experts from the National Health Service, education, charity, and justice sectors to get a better understanding of the challenges affecting those with ADHD, including in accessing services and support. The final report was published on 6 November 2025. The work of the independent ADHD Taskforce highlighted the need for coordinated action across health, education, and public services to reform ADHD services and support.

My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced on 4 December 2025 the launch of an Independent Review into Prevalence and Support for Mental Health Conditions, ADHD and Autism.

The independent review will build directly on the evidence and recommendations of the ADHD Taskforce. The taskforce’s report provides a strong, evidence‑based foundation, and the review will consider its findings in full to ensure conclusions are aligned and complementary. In the meantime, we are working with NHS England to deliver some of the taskforce’s recommendations such as on data improvement, enhancing Mental Health Support Teams in Schools, improved commissioning, and better collaboration between mental health and primary care services.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many a) nursing and b) residential care home beds have been lost in England due to provider closures in the past five years.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Over the past five years, 399 nursing homes registered with the Care Quality Commission have deactivated their locations in England. The following table shows the number of beds impacted (please note, this data does not include any data for new beds):

Over the past five years, 1,833 residential homes registered with the Care Quality Commission have deactivated their locations in England. The following table shows the number of beds impacted (please note, this data does not include any data for new beds):

The following table shows the total number of beds that have been impacted due to nursing home and residential home deactivations in England, over the past five years (please note, this data does not include any data for new beds):

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance his Department issues to local authorities to on conducting consultations with recognised care provider associations when setting adult social care fee rates.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Care Act 2014 places a statutory duty on local authorities, under Section 5, to promote a sustainable and high-quality adult social care market. This includes ensuring that care providers can operate effectively and that fee structures support the delivery of high-quality services. While the Care Act does not prescribe specific methods of engagement, such as recognised provider associations, it sets the overarching requirement for local authorities to understand local market conditions and the costs of care. In practice, this means local authorities are expected to draw on appropriate evidence, which may include information from providers, when setting fees.

On 18 December 2025, the Department published its new annual local authority priority-setting document. This sets out a list of priority outcomes and expectations for local authorities in 2026/27, and one of these is for local authorities to “set fee rates at a sustainable level, in line with commissioning priorities, to help shape markets and enable adult social care providers to recruit a skilled workforce and stabilise and improvement workforce capacity, and in preparation for employment rights reforms, starting from financial year 2026 and the fair pair agreement starting in financial year 2028”.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to include palliative and end of life care as part of compulsory training for health and care professionals.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We are committed to training the staff we need to ensure patients are cared for by the right professional, when and where they need it, including at the end of life.

The training of health and care professionals is the statutory responsibility of the United Kingdom’s independent regulatory bodies, including the General Medical Council, the Nursing and Midwifery Council, and the Health and Care Professions Council, which set the standards of proficiency, conduct, and performance required for registration. Approved education institutions and practice partners are responsible for designing, delivering, and assessing education programmes that meet these regulatory standards. Programmes are then approved and monitored by the relevant regulator.

To ensure the health and social care workforce, including volunteers, are equipped and well supported to deliver personalised care to people at the end of life, Health Education England, now part of NHS England, hosts the End of Life Care for All e-learning training programme, which includes nine modules on improving care for people at the end of life.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of patients who have experienced disruption to repeat prescriptions as a result of postal delays.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department does not collect data on the number of patients who have experienced a delay in receiving a prescription.

Pharmacy contractors in England are required by the NHS Terms of Service to dispense medicines and appliances ordered on National Health Service prescriptions with reasonable promptness. Reasonable promptness is not defined by a fixed number of days or hours but requires pharmacies to consider clinical needs of a patient and what is operationally feasible. Where a delivery company is involved as a third party, it remains the responsibility of the NHS pharmacy contractor to ensure they continue meeting their NHS Terms of Service.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Government has considered writing to every pension-age person to inform them they can phone or go in-person to book a GP appointment following the introduction of the online booking system on 1 October 2025.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The contractual change made on 1 October 2025 required general practices to keep their existing online systems open during core hours, allowing patients to contact the practice online between 8am and 6.30pm. Telephone and in-person routes continue to operate as before. As non-digital routes remain available, a separate assessment of the impact on digitally excluded patients was not required.

It is not a standard practice to write to citizens where services remain unchanged.

National Health Service organisations must ensure all patients have equitable access to care, and that decisions or policies do not unfairly disadvantage people or lead to an increase in inequalities. All NHS organisations are legally obliged not to discriminate. Although digital first services are encouraged for those who choose to use them, a non‑digital solution must be available for patients who cannot or do not wish to engage digitally. The GP contract is clear that telephone and face to face access must remain in place, and online tools can only be provided in addition to not instead of other routes.

These requirements apply across all NHS services. We recognise that not all patients can or want to use online services. To ensure that patients are not digitally excluded, the GP Contract is clear that patients should always have the option of telephoning or visiting their practice in person, and all online tools must always be provided in addition to, rather than as a replacement for, other channels for accessing a GP. We have also committed to work with digital transformation teams in integrated care boards (ICBs) and with groups at risk of digital exclusion to ensure digital solutions are inclusive.

Based on the data currently available, the time between booking and attending a GP appointment has remained stable following the introduction of the 1 October 2025 contractual requirement for online consultation systems to operate throughout core hours.

Data for October to December 2024 and the corresponding period in 2025 show only marginal variation. 37.9% to 46% of appointments were booked on the same day in 2024 compared with 38.7% to 46% in 2025, and 74.9% to 82.7% were seen within two weeks in 2024 compared with 75% to 82.8% in 2025. This is consistent with the fact that many practices were already operating their systems in this way prior to the contractual change. Access to general practice has continued to improve. In December 2025, 88.8% of appointments not usually booked in advance were seen within 14 days, the highest proportion in 2025. Nationally, patient satisfaction with GP access has also improved, rising from 61% in July 2024 to 75.2% in December 2025.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has assessed the impact of the online GP booking system introduced on 1 October 2025 on (a) patient access to GPs and (b) appointment waiting times.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The contractual change made on 1 October 2025 required general practices to keep their existing online systems open during core hours, allowing patients to contact the practice online between 8am and 6.30pm. Telephone and in-person routes continue to operate as before. As non-digital routes remain available, a separate assessment of the impact on digitally excluded patients was not required.

It is not a standard practice to write to citizens where services remain unchanged.

National Health Service organisations must ensure all patients have equitable access to care, and that decisions or policies do not unfairly disadvantage people or lead to an increase in inequalities. All NHS organisations are legally obliged not to discriminate. Although digital first services are encouraged for those who choose to use them, a non‑digital solution must be available for patients who cannot or do not wish to engage digitally. The GP contract is clear that telephone and face to face access must remain in place, and online tools can only be provided in addition to not instead of other routes.

These requirements apply across all NHS services. We recognise that not all patients can or want to use online services. To ensure that patients are not digitally excluded, the GP Contract is clear that patients should always have the option of telephoning or visiting their practice in person, and all online tools must always be provided in addition to, rather than as a replacement for, other channels for accessing a GP. We have also committed to work with digital transformation teams in integrated care boards (ICBs) and with groups at risk of digital exclusion to ensure digital solutions are inclusive.

Based on the data currently available, the time between booking and attending a GP appointment has remained stable following the introduction of the 1 October 2025 contractual requirement for online consultation systems to operate throughout core hours.

Data for October to December 2024 and the corresponding period in 2025 show only marginal variation. 37.9% to 46% of appointments were booked on the same day in 2024 compared with 38.7% to 46% in 2025, and 74.9% to 82.7% were seen within two weeks in 2024 compared with 75% to 82.8% in 2025. This is consistent with the fact that many practices were already operating their systems in this way prior to the contractual change. Access to general practice has continued to improve. In December 2025, 88.8% of appointments not usually booked in advance were seen within 14 days, the highest proportion in 2025. Nationally, patient satisfaction with GP access has also improved, rising from 61% in July 2024 to 75.2% in December 2025.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the GP Contract 2026/27, what cost benefit analysis his Department conducted in relation to the bonus GP practices in England will be paid to prescribe patients weight loss drugs.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The 2026/27 GP Contract introduces new incentives through the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) for general practitioners to prescribe weight loss drugs.

At this stage, the Department has not made quantified estimates of net costs to the National Health Service over one-, five- or ten-year periods specifically attributable to these QOF indicators. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s technology appraisal considered the clinical effectiveness and cost effectiveness of tirzepatide at a population level, and the QOF changes are intended to support appropriate implementation of that guidance.

QOF is an established lever for supporting the roll out of evidence-based care in general practice. Data gathered through QOF this year will be used to understand the impact of the new QOF obesity indicators on patient pathways and service use, and this evidence may inform future assessment of costs and benefits over time.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of paying GPs a bonus to prescribe patients weight loss drugs on savings to the NHS over a (a) one, (b) five year and (c) 10 year period.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The 2026/27 GP Contract introduces new incentives through the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) for general practitioners to prescribe weight loss drugs.

At this stage, the Department has not made quantified estimates of net costs to the National Health Service over one-, five- or ten-year periods specifically attributable to these QOF indicators. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s technology appraisal considered the clinical effectiveness and cost‑effectiveness of tirzepatide at a population level, and the QOF changes are intended to support appropriate implementation of that guidance.

QOF is an established lever for supporting the roll out of evidence-based care in general practice. Data gathered through QOF this year will be used to understand the impact of the new QOF obesity indicators on patient pathways and service use, and this evidence may inform future assessment of costs and benefits over time.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of introducing a 24/7 end of life care advice line on the number of hospital admissions for those with a palliative care need.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We recognise that 24/7 advice lines can support people nearing the end of life to remain at home where appropriate and to reduce avoidable hospital admissions.

NHS England has published statutory guidance on palliative care and end of life care to support commissioners. The guidance makes specific reference to commissioners defining how their services will meet population needs 24/7 and includes a priority action for ensuring that staff, patients, and carers can access the care and advice they need, whatever the time of day.

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines also recommend that adults approaching the end of life, and their carers, have access to an out of hours end of life care advice line. Although NICE guidance is not mandatory, there is an expectation that commissioners and service providers take the guidelines into account when making decisions about how to best meet the needs of their local communities.

We are developing a Palliative Care and End of Life Care Modern Service Framework, which will set out evidence-based interventions to improve the access, quality, and sustainability of care. Availability of 24/7 advice will be considered as part of the interventions that can potentially achieve our goal of improving palliative care and end of life care for all.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a 24/7 end of life care advice line.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We recognise that 24/7 advice lines can support people nearing the end of life to remain at home where appropriate and to reduce avoidable hospital admissions.

NHS England has published statutory guidance on palliative care and end of life care to support commissioners. The guidance makes specific reference to commissioners defining how their services will meet population needs 24/7 and includes a priority action for ensuring that staff, patients, and carers can access the care and advice they need, whatever the time of day.

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines also recommend that adults approaching the end of life, and their carers, have access to an out of hours end of life care advice line. Although NICE guidance is not mandatory, there is an expectation that commissioners and service providers take the guidelines into account when making decisions about how to best meet the needs of their local communities.

We are developing a Palliative Care and End of Life Care Modern Service Framework, which will set out evidence-based interventions to improve the access, quality, and sustainability of care. Availability of 24/7 advice will be considered as part of the interventions that can potentially achieve our goal of improving palliative care and end of life care for all.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of the online GP booking system introduced on 1 October 2025 on the digitally excluded.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The contractual change made on 1 October 2025 required general practices to keep their existing online systems open during core hours, allowing patients to contact the practice online between 8am and 6.30pm. Telephone and in-person routes continue to operate as before. As non-digital routes remain available, a separate assessment of the impact on digitally excluded patients was not required.

It is not a standard practice to write to citizens where services remain unchanged.

National Health Service organisations must ensure all patients have equitable access to care, and that decisions or policies do not unfairly disadvantage people or lead to an increase in inequalities. All NHS organisations are legally obliged not to discriminate. Although digital first services are encouraged for those who choose to use them, a non‑digital solution must be available for patients who cannot or do not wish to engage digitally. The GP contract is clear that telephone and face to face access must remain in place, and online tools can only be provided in addition to not instead of other routes.

These requirements apply across all NHS services. We recognise that not all patients can or want to use online services. To ensure that patients are not digitally excluded, the GP Contract is clear that patients should always have the option of telephoning or visiting their practice in person, and all online tools must always be provided in addition to, rather than as a replacement for, other channels for accessing a GP. We have also committed to work with digital transformation teams in integrated care boards (ICBs) and with groups at risk of digital exclusion to ensure digital solutions are inclusive.

Based on the data currently available, the time between booking and attending a GP appointment has remained stable following the introduction of the 1 October 2025 contractual requirement for online consultation systems to operate throughout core hours.

Data for October to December 2024 and the corresponding period in 2025 show only marginal variation. 37.9% to 46% of appointments were booked on the same day in 2024 compared with 38.7% to 46% in 2025, and 74.9% to 82.7% were seen within two weeks in 2024 compared with 75% to 82.8% in 2025. This is consistent with the fact that many practices were already operating their systems in this way prior to the contractual change. Access to general practice has continued to improve. In December 2025, 88.8% of appointments not usually booked in advance were seen within 14 days, the highest proportion in 2025. Nationally, patient satisfaction with GP access has also improved, rising from 61% in July 2024 to 75.2% in December 2025.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what has been the average length of time to decide an application under the Portfolio Pathway route for each of the last five years for which data is available.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

No assessment has been made by the Department of the effectiveness of the Portfolio Pathway route to professional registration for overseas qualified specialist medical practitioners and general practitioners or the availability of portfolio assessors. The Department does not hold application or qualification data about this route.

The General Medical Council (GMC) is the independent regulator of medical practitioners, or doctors, in the United Kingdom. It is responsible for setting standards that must be met by both domestic and international applicants wishing to be added to their registers to ensure registrants are safe to practise.

As the independent regulator, it is for the GMC to monitor the operational effectiveness of its routes to registration, and to determine the qualifications and experience that it will accept. The GMC publishes data on applications to its Portfolio Pathway at the following link:

https://www.gmc-uk.org/about/what-we-do-and-why/data-and-research/statistics-and-reports/doctors-specialist-applications-and-certificates

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many doctors have applied to qualify as consultants under the Portfolio Pathway route over the last five years for which data is available.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

No assessment has been made by the Department of the effectiveness of the Portfolio Pathway route to professional registration for overseas qualified specialist medical practitioners and general practitioners or the availability of portfolio assessors. The Department does not hold application or qualification data about this route.

The General Medical Council (GMC) is the independent regulator of medical practitioners, or doctors, in the United Kingdom. It is responsible for setting standards that must be met by both domestic and international applicants wishing to be added to their registers to ensure registrants are safe to practise.

As the independent regulator, it is for the GMC to monitor the operational effectiveness of its routes to registration, and to determine the qualifications and experience that it will accept. The GMC publishes data on applications to its Portfolio Pathway at the following link:

https://www.gmc-uk.org/about/what-we-do-and-why/data-and-research/statistics-and-reports/doctors-specialist-applications-and-certificates

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many doctors have qualified as consultants under the Portfolio Pathway route over the last five years for which data is available.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

No assessment has been made by the Department of the effectiveness of the Portfolio Pathway route to professional registration for overseas qualified specialist medical practitioners and general practitioners or the availability of portfolio assessors. The Department does not hold application or qualification data about this route.

The General Medical Council (GMC) is the independent regulator of medical practitioners, or doctors, in the United Kingdom. It is responsible for setting standards that must be met by both domestic and international applicants wishing to be added to their registers to ensure registrants are safe to practise.

As the independent regulator, it is for the GMC to monitor the operational effectiveness of its routes to registration, and to determine the qualifications and experience that it will accept. The GMC publishes data on applications to its Portfolio Pathway at the following link:

https://www.gmc-uk.org/about/what-we-do-and-why/data-and-research/statistics-and-reports/doctors-specialist-applications-and-certificates

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the availability of sufficiently qualified assessors to review portfolios under the Portfolio Pathway system.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

No assessment has been made by the Department of the effectiveness of the Portfolio Pathway route to professional registration for overseas qualified specialist medical practitioners and general practitioners or the availability of portfolio assessors. The Department does not hold application or qualification data about this route.

The General Medical Council (GMC) is the independent regulator of medical practitioners, or doctors, in the United Kingdom. It is responsible for setting standards that must be met by both domestic and international applicants wishing to be added to their registers to ensure registrants are safe to practise.

As the independent regulator, it is for the GMC to monitor the operational effectiveness of its routes to registration, and to determine the qualifications and experience that it will accept. The GMC publishes data on applications to its Portfolio Pathway at the following link:

https://www.gmc-uk.org/about/what-we-do-and-why/data-and-research/statistics-and-reports/doctors-specialist-applications-and-certificates

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Portfolio Pathway system for qualification as consultants.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

No assessment has been made by the Department of the effectiveness of the Portfolio Pathway route to professional registration for overseas qualified specialist medical practitioners and general practitioners or the availability of portfolio assessors. The Department does not hold application or qualification data about this route.

The General Medical Council (GMC) is the independent regulator of medical practitioners, or doctors, in the United Kingdom. It is responsible for setting standards that must be met by both domestic and international applicants wishing to be added to their registers to ensure registrants are safe to practise.

As the independent regulator, it is for the GMC to monitor the operational effectiveness of its routes to registration, and to determine the qualifications and experience that it will accept. The GMC publishes data on applications to its Portfolio Pathway at the following link:

https://www.gmc-uk.org/about/what-we-do-and-why/data-and-research/statistics-and-reports/doctors-specialist-applications-and-certificates

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support NHS services in Somerset to improve coordination between community mental health teams and specialist diabetes services in (a) Yeovil constituency and (b) Somerset.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Improving the integration between community mental health services and other physical health services and meeting the holistic needs of people with severe mental health problems is a priority, as set out in the Community Mental Health Framework.

The National Health Service in Somerset, including Yeovil, has a personalised care programme which seeks to recognise individual needs, knowledge, and priorities. Where someone has needs that encompass mental health and diabetes services, Somerset’s personalised care programme will meet those needs by bringing together tailored input from specialist teams. This work will be developed as part of neighbourhood commissioning in the coming years, enabling services to work together to meet complex needs.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help make primary care workers aware of the potential for a link between autoimmune conditions and breast implants.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Guidance for clinicians and patients called Symptoms sometimes referred to as Breast Implant Illness, including autoimmune conditions, was published by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in 2020 and updated in 2023. Healthcare professionals and anyone experiencing any symptoms that they believe to be associated with their breast implants are strongly encouraged to report these through the Yellow Card scheme.

Continuing professional development (CPD) opportunities for primary care workers are provided by royal colleges and professional bodies for each profession.

Primary care workers should ensure their own clinical knowledge remains up to date and are responsible for identifying learning needs as part of their CPD. This activity should include taking account of new research and developments in guidance, such as that produced by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, to ensure that they can continue to provide high-quality care to all patients.

General practices and primary care networks also have access to a regional Primary Care Training Hub, which will bring together education and training resources from National Health Service organisations, community providers, and local authorities. Training hubs are usually run by a clinical leader and a manager supported by a network of primary care staff with education and training professionals based in the community. They work closely with primary care networks and integrated care systems to support workforce priorities and tackle health inequalities to help meet patient and population demand.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the bonus GP practices in England will be paid to prescribe patients weight loss drugs, what estimate his Department has made of the expected level of potential savings for the NHS over a one year, five year and 10 year period.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The 2026/27 GP Contract introduces new incentives through the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) for general practitioners to prescribe weight loss drugs.

At this stage, the Department has not made quantified estimates of net costs to the National Health Service over one-, five- or ten-year periods specifically attributable to these QOF indicators. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s technology appraisal considered the clinical effectiveness and cost effectiveness of tirzepatide at a population level, and the QOF changes are intended to support appropriate implementation of that guidance.

QOF is an established lever for supporting the roll out of evidence-based care in general practice. Data gathered through QOF this year will be used to understand the impact of the new QOF obesity indicators on patient pathways and service use, and this evidence may inform future assessment of costs and benefits over time.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the GP Contract 2026/27, what estimate his Department has made of the level of cost savings for the NHS in relation to the bonus GP practices in England will be paid to prescribe patients weight loss drugs.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The 2026/27 GP Contract introduces new incentives through the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) for general practitioners to prescribe weight loss drugs.

At this stage, the Department has not made quantified estimates of net costs to the National Health Service over one-, five- or ten-year periods specifically attributable to these QOF indicators. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s technology appraisal considered the clinical effectiveness and cost effectiveness of tirzepatide at a population level, and the QOF changes are intended to support appropriate implementation of that guidance.

QOF is an established lever for supporting the roll out of evidence-based care in general practice. Data gathered through QOF this year will be used to understand the impact of the new QOF obesity indicators on patient pathways and service use, and this evidence may inform future assessment of costs and benefits over time.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the allocation of new dental school places.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government will provide £11 million per annum at steady state, to increase the number of new dental school places by 50 each year. This is the first sustained expansion of domestic dental training places since 2007 and will take effect from the 2027/28 academic year.

The Minister of State for Skills and I have written to the Chair of the Office for Students (OfS) to increase the maximum fundable limit for dental school places in England from 809 to 859 places. The OfS has statutory responsibility for allocating funding for dental school places. The Minister of State for Skills and I have asked that the OfS focuses the expansion on new dental schools approved by the General Dental Council, but which do not currently receive government funding for places.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential impact of the transition from student loan funding to NHS bursary support on the cost of living for medical students in the later years of their degree.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government reviews the funding arrangements for medical students annually. This includes the NHS Bursary Scheme and Student Finance England support.

The 10-Year Health Plan, published in July 2025, recognises the need to improve access to the medical profession for those from disadvantaged backgrounds and commits to a range of actions to achieve this. This includes exploring options to improve financial support for students from the lowest socioeconomic backgrounds, so that they are able to thrive at medical school. We will set out next steps in due course.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help increase the uptake of kidney function tests among at-risk populations in primary care.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Early diagnosis of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is supported through widespread access to blood and urine tests across the National Health Service. Phlebotomy is a key part of this pathway. The NHS delivers over one billion blood tests each year, supporting the diagnosis and monitoring of a wide range of conditions, including CKD.

Community diagnostic centres (CDCs) are increasing diagnostic capacity and improving access to testing closer to patients’ homes. Phlebotomy services are currently available in 119 CDCs. CDCs have delivered approximately 1.6 million tests between April 2025 and the end of February 2026. In addition, non-obstetric ultrasound, also used to examine kidneys, is available in 152 CDCs and delivered approximately 1.01 million tests over the same period.

NHS England continues to work with integrated care boards to expand diagnostic capacity and improve referral pathways, helping clinicians access the tests needed to support earlier diagnosis and monitoring of long-term conditions, including CKD.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to deliver increased glaucoma services in the community.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Integrated care boards are responsible for assessing the health needs of their local population, and for commissioning primary and secondary eye care services, to meet them. This can already include the commissioning of community-based glaucoma services, including glaucoma repeat readings and glaucoma monitoring.

The Getting It Right First Time programme is also developing best practice guidance for glaucoma services, to support consistent adoption of high standards of care from detection to ongoing monitoring or discharge.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the maximum fundable limits for dental schools in England.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government will provide £11 million per annum at steady state, to increase the number of new dental school places by 50 each year. This is the first sustained expansion of domestic dental training places since 2007 and will take effect from the 2027/28 academic year.

The Minister of State for Skills and I have written to the Chair of the Office for Students (OfS) to increase the maximum fundable limit for dental school places in England from 809 to 859 places. The OfS has statutory responsibility for allocating funding for dental school places. The Minister of State for Skills and I have asked that the OfS focuses the expansion on new dental schools approved by the General Dental Council, but which do not currently receive government funding for places.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department's publication entitled Changes to the GP contract in 2026/27, updated on 4 March 2025, whether the money to fund the practice-level GP reimbursement scheme will be new funding.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Following feedback from the 2026/27 GP Contract consultation, we are introducing a practice-level general practice reimbursement scheme using £292 million of repurposed funding from the current Capacity and Access Payment.

This funding will be available to practices to hire additional general practitioners (GPs) or to fund additional sessions with existing GPs to improve access in GPs. This aims to strengthen capacity, access, and improve patient satisfaction, whilst also addressing GP unemployment and underemployment. This is good value for the taxpayer and guarantees the money is spent on GPs.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the planned level of funding per post is for the additional 1,000 medical specialty training posts referred to in the 10 Year Workforce Plan; and how this compares with the current level of funding per post for existing medical specialty training posts.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS England is currently in discussions with local National Health Service providers on proposals to expand specialty training posts, with a view to introducing these through an additional recruitment round in 2026.

NHS England has written to NHS Providers on the 30 January setting out an offer of funding. There are a range of funding models used for postgraduate medical training posts in the NHS and NHS England is currently considering the contribution that central and local funding should make for these additional posts, which will be finalised shortly in discussions with providers.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the additional 1,000 medical specialty training posts referred to in the 10 Year Workforce Plan will be allocated in the current calendar year or phased over multiple years.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS England is currently in discussions with local National Health Service providers on proposals to expand specialty training posts, with a view to introducing these through an additional recruitment round in 2026.

NHS England has written to NHS Providers on the 30 January setting out an offer of funding. There are a range of funding models used for postgraduate medical training posts in the NHS and NHS England is currently considering the contribution that central and local funding should make for these additional posts, which will be finalised shortly in discussions with providers.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Insolvency Service's press release entitled The fake £9.8 million NHS contract: directors banned after investors tricked out of more than £2 million, published on 5 March 2026, whether private investors are currently able to verify the validity of previous NHS procurement contracts.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Information about National Health Service procurement contracts is publicly available. Contract Award Notices are published under the Procurement Act 2023 and, for clinical services, under the Provider Selection Regime. Investors can therefore confirm whether a legitimate contract exists by checking the Find a Tender Service and Contracts Finder.

NHS organisations cannot confirm commercial claims made to private investors. However, information on suppliers, director identities and disqualifications, insolvency events, and persons of significant control is available on Companies House. If discrepancies arise, they can be reported to the NHS Counter Fraud Authority.

With respect to the NHS Supply Chain, if suppliers are removed from a framework, NHS Supply Chain’s standard practice is to update its Contract Information Pages to remove them from the list of suppliers’ section and the product listing information.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps is his Department taking to increase recruitment of paediatric pathologists.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS England established a national programme in late 2022 to address paediatric and perinatal pathologist workforce challenges and has undertaken significant work in relation to workforce funding, training, and incentives. This has included making additional funding available to support training posts in areas where there have been interested candidates but no training post available and changes to the national training course and examination structure. The number of training posts has increased across several recruitment rounds and the perinatal and paediatric training pathway will be at a full complement of 16 training posts from February 2026.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to extend the 2024-25 NHS pay settlement for staff aligned to Agenda for Change to social enterprises delivering NHS-funded services; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of excluding such organisations on workforce retention, pay parity and service sustainability.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

This specific assessment has not been made.

Independent organisations commissioned by the National Health Service in England, such as general practices or social enterprises, are free to develop and adapt their own terms and conditions of employment, including the pay scales that they use. It is for them to determine what is affordable within the financial model they operate.

Where such organisations choose to dynamically link to any of the national contracts, including Agenda for Change, those staff will be contractually entitled to receive the same uplifts in pay and associated terms and conditions as staff employed in NHS organisations.

The 2024/25 pay award was consolidated and funding has been issued. There are no plans to revisit the funding or to issue additional guidance.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment (a) his Department and (b) UKHSA has made of the potential risks of exposure to high ambient temperatures during pregnancy including (i) stillbirth, (ii) preterm birth and (iii) maternal health complications.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) recognise that there are risks to pregnant women caused by exposure to extreme high temperatures, which are set out in the Adverse weather and health plan equity review and impact assessment 2024. This includes an assessment on stillbirth, pre-term birth, and maternal health complications.

The UKHSA provides a weather-health alerting system for England, which alerts the public, including specific vulnerable groups such as pregnant women, and public sector organisations to prepare for impacts of adverse weather, including high temperatures. Risks to health are communicated via heat-health alerts.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that vulnerable and terminally ill residents in rural communities in Devon can rely on the provision of daily phlebotomy services within a reasonable travelling distance.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

It is important that people have access to the services they need, and, especially for vulnerable and terminally ill patients, for them to be located in the community, where possible.

Community diagnostic centres (CDCs), such as the Devon and Torbay CDC in Torquay, and the Exeter Nightingale CDC, are supporting one of the Government’s top priorities for health, to shift care from the hospital to the community. CDCs offer local populations a wide range of diagnostic tests, including phlebotomy, closer to home, and greater choice on where and how they are undertaken, whilst also reducing pressure on hospitals.

The 2025 Spending Review confirmed over £6 billion of additional capital investment over five years across new diagnostic, elective, and urgent care capacity. This money is allocated to systems for them to invest as locally determined.

Investment in diagnostic services, including phlebotomy, is delivered through CDCs and local commissioning arrangements. It is up to local systems to determine how investment supports clinic-based services and domiciliary provision.

In Devon, the Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (RDUH) operates community phlebotomy services across the county, including in rural areas. The service provides planned weekday blood tests across local community hospitals, such as Holsworthy Community Hospital and Torrington Hospital. RDUH provides a "Community Collect" service, while home visits for housebound patients can be arranged. Some general practices in Devon are also providing blood tests for patients, as required for a hospital purpose. Further information on the RDUH is available at the following link:

https://www.nhs.uk/services/acute-trust/royal-devon-university-healthcare-nhs-foundation-trust/RH8

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what timetable his Department has set for decisions on a second wave of National Service Frameworks; and whether respiratory conditions are under consideration.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government will consider the long-term conditions for future waves of modern service frameworks (MSFs), including respiratory conditions. The criteria for determining other conditions for future MSFs will be based on where there is potential for rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. In relation to timing, after the initial wave of MSFs is complete, the National Quality Board will determine the conditions to prioritise for new MSFs as part of its work programme.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the (a) prevalence of respiratory disease and (b) number of emergency hospital admissions for respiratory conditions in Reigate constituency compared with national averages; and what steps he is taking to ensure respiratory health is prioritised nationally, including through the introduction of a Modern Service Framework for respiratory care.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Data is available for emergency finished admission episodes (FAEs) where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’. The following table shows the number of FAEs where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’ for Reigate and England, for activity in English National Health Service hospitals and English NHS-commissioned activity in the independent sector, for 2024/25 and provisionally for 2025/26:

Source: Hospital Episode Statistics, NHS England.

Available data on trends in respiratory conditions can be found on the Department’s Fingertips dataset. Data is not available by parliamentary constituency. Data is available at regional, county, unitary authority and integrated care board level. Information for Reigate can be found at the following link:

https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/search/Respiratory#page/1/gid/1/pat/6/ati/501/are/E07000211/iid/40701/age/163/sex/4/cat/-1/ctp/-1/yrr/1/cid/4/tbm/1

The Government will consider long-term conditions for future waves of modern service frameworks (MSFs), including respiratory conditions. The criteria for determining other conditions for future MSFs will be based on where there is potential for rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. After the initial wave of MSFs is complete, the National Quality Board will determine the conditions to prioritise for new MSFs as part of its work programme.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that professional regulatory costs do not act as a disincentive to entering or remaining in the nursing, midwifery and nursing associate professions.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is independent of the Government, is directly accountable to Parliament, and is responsible for operational matters concerning the discharge of its statutory duties.

As the NMC set out in its consultation, registrant fees, which account for 97% of organisational income, have remained at the same level for over 10 years. The NMC has deemed it necessary to propose a fee increase to ensure that the organisation can carry out its statutory functions. We understand that the proposed increase would equate to an annual increase of £23 per registrant, the equivalent of an additional £1.92 a month.

The NMC’s registrant fee remains one of the lowest across all of the health and care professional regulators. United Kingdom taxpayers can claim tax relief on their registration fees, helping to reduce the overall cost. Professionals can also apply to spread the cost of registration by paying in four instalments each year.

We are working closely with employers and leaders across the National Health Service to improve staff retention. There are many issues that can influence staff retention, so this requires a multi-faceted approach.

The 10 Year Workforce Plan due to be published in the spring will have a big focus on making the NHS a better employer. This includes the development of a new set of staff standards which will focus on improving staff experience and health and wellbeing.

NHS England is already leading work nationally through its retention programme to drive a consistent, system-wide approach to staff retention across NHS trusts. This ensures trusts have access to proven retention strategies, data-driven monitoring, and can foster a more stable, engaged, productive, and supported workforce.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the proposed Nursing and Midwifery Council registration fee increase on recruitment, retention and workforce morale within the NHS.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is independent of the Government, is directly accountable to Parliament, and is responsible for operational matters concerning the discharge of its statutory duties.

As the NMC set out in its consultation, registrant fees, which account for 97% of organisational income, have remained at the same level for over 10 years. The NMC has deemed it necessary to propose a fee increase to ensure that the organisation can carry out its statutory functions. We understand that the proposed increase would equate to an annual increase of £23 per registrant, the equivalent of an additional £1.92 a month.

The NMC’s registrant fee remains one of the lowest across all of the health and care professional regulators. United Kingdom taxpayers can claim tax relief on their registration fees, helping to reduce the overall cost. Professionals can also apply to spread the cost of registration by paying in four instalments each year.

We are working closely with employers and leaders across the National Health Service to improve staff retention. There are many issues that can influence staff retention, so this requires a multi-faceted approach.

The 10 Year Workforce Plan due to be published in the spring will have a big focus on making the NHS a better employer. This includes the development of a new set of staff standards which will focus on improving staff experience and health and wellbeing.

NHS England is already leading work nationally through its retention programme to drive a consistent, system-wide approach to staff retention across NHS trusts. This ensures trusts have access to proven retention strategies, data-driven monitoring, and can foster a more stable, engaged, productive, and supported workforce.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information is being provided to his Department by NHS England on the progress on insourcing previously outsourced services within the NHS.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We do not routinely collect data on outsourcing or insourcing arrangements. Outsourcing transactions which involve the creation of new subsidiaries or material changes to existing subsidiaries are reportable to NHS England for review in line with its published subsidiary transaction guidance.

As set out on 26 September 2025, NHS England will shortly consult on updating the subsidiary transaction guidance to confirm that subsidiaries involving the transfer of National Health Service staff will now only be approved in a limited number of circumstances, and only where there is clear local union support and protection of NHS terms and conditions, including pension access.

Subsidiary transaction proposals involving the transfer of NHS staff are paused while NHS England undertakes this consultation, unless they are supported by local unions.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help ensure that victims of domestic abuse presenting in the NHS outside of primary care get the responses they need.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Victims of domestic abuse may present in any part of the National Health Service. All NHS staff receive national mandatory safeguarding training that is being strengthened for launch in December 2026. This will reinforce to staff their safeguarding responsibilities and support them in identifying and responding to victims of abuse.

The risk of domestic abuse can increase during pregnancy, which is why midwives and health visitors are trained to spot the signs and to provide support.

From April 2026, sexual assault referral centres will be asking victims and survivors about domestic abuse. This will improve outcomes by ensuring that the correct referral pathways are accessed in a timely and appropriate manner.

As well as rolling out a domestic abuse and sexual violence referral service across integrated care boards, which will include training general practice staff to spot the signs of violence and abuse, the Department will be investing a further £5 million each year for the next three years into support services for victims and survivors of domestic abuse and sexual violence.

To go further, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has appointed the Hon. Member for Lowestoft, Jess Asato as his advisor on violence against women and girls to drive further transformation across the health system.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of health-related funding for specialist sexual violence support services in Surrey Heath constituency.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Sexual assault referral centres (SARCs) provide crisis care, and medical and forensic assessment for people who have experienced sexual assault. NHS England’s funding for sexual assault and abuse services has increased year on year, with £57.632 million provided nationally in 2024/25. A free at the point of use, confidential SARC is available in Surrey 24/7, 365 days a year.

As set out in the Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy, published in December 2025, the Department will:

• roll out, with funding, a domestic abuse and sexual violence referral service across integrated care boards (ICBs) by 2029, starting with up to ten ICBs in 2026, and will include a specialist support worker for every general practice (GP) to draw on and training for GP staff to spot the signs of violence and abuse;
• invest a further £5 million each year for the next three years to support victims and survivors of domestic abuse and sexual violence; and
• provide up to £50 million to roll out specialist services for child sexual abuse victims to each NHS region in England.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether any civil servants hired by his Department were recruited over another person on the basis of a protected characteristic in each of the last three years.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Civil Service recruitment is governed by the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010, which requires that all appointments to the Civil Service are made on merit on the basis of fair and open competition.

The Cabinet Office does not recruit candidates on the basis of protected characteristics. All appointments are made on merit, in line with the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles. Compliance with these principles is overseen by the independent Civil Service Commission.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his department has made representations outlining concerns to NHS England about multiple Trusts and FTs in the North West engaging in activities around the proposed formation of or changes to subcos without following the guidance provided by NHS England in February 2024.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Outsourcing transactions which involve the creation of new subsidiaries, or material changes to existing subsidiaries, including any proposals in the North West, are reportable to NHS England for review in line with its published subsidiary transaction guidance.

NHS England wrote to the sector on 26 September 2025 to highlight a change in national policy on subsidiaries given concerns about transferring National Health Service staff into new organisations, which is seen as undermining the concept of a single NHS workforce.

NHS England will shortly consult on updating the subsidiary transaction guidance to confirm that subsidiaries involving the transfer of NHS staff will now only be approved in a limited number of circumstances, and only where there is clear local union support and protection of NHS terms and conditions, including pension access.

All subsidiary transaction proposals involving the transfer of NHS staff are paused while NHS England undertakes this consultation, unless they are supported by local unions. This includes any proposals in the North West.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what action will be taken against NHS Trusts that do not follow guidance from NHS England around proposals to consider the formation of a subco.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Outsourcing transactions which involve the creation of new subsidiaries, or material changes to existing subsidiaries, including any proposals in the North West, are reportable to NHS England for review in line with its published subsidiary transaction guidance.

NHS England wrote to the sector on 26 September 2025 to highlight a change in national policy on subsidiaries given concerns about transferring National Health Service staff into new organisations, which is seen as undermining the concept of a single NHS workforce.

NHS England will shortly consult on updating the subsidiary transaction guidance to confirm that subsidiaries involving the transfer of NHS staff will now only be approved in a limited number of circumstances, and only where there is clear local union support and protection of NHS terms and conditions, including pension access.

All subsidiary transaction proposals involving the transfer of NHS staff are paused while NHS England undertakes this consultation, unless they are supported by local unions. This includes any proposals in the North West.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps have been taken to ensure NHS England enforces the guidance around the formation of subcos.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Outsourcing transactions which involve the creation of new subsidiaries, or material changes to existing subsidiaries, including any proposals in the North West, are reportable to NHS England for review in line with its published subsidiary transaction guidance.

NHS England wrote to the sector on 26 September 2025 to highlight a change in national policy on subsidiaries given concerns about transferring National Health Service staff into new organisations, which is seen as undermining the concept of a single NHS workforce.

NHS England will shortly consult on updating the subsidiary transaction guidance to confirm that subsidiaries involving the transfer of NHS staff will now only be approved in a limited number of circumstances, and only where there is clear local union support and protection of NHS terms and conditions, including pension access.

All subsidiary transaction proposals involving the transfer of NHS staff are paused while NHS England undertakes this consultation, unless they are supported by local unions. This includes any proposals in the North West.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department is collecting to monitor progress towards reducing the level of outsourcing in the NHS.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We do not routinely collect data on outsourcing or insourcing arrangements. Outsourcing transactions which involve the creation of new subsidiaries or material changes to existing subsidiaries are reportable to NHS England for review in line with its published subsidiary transaction guidance.

As set out on 26 September 2025, NHS England will shortly consult on updating the subsidiary transaction guidance to confirm that subsidiaries involving the transfer of National Health Service staff will now only be approved in a limited number of circumstances, and only where there is clear local union support and protection of NHS terms and conditions, including pension access.

Subsidiary transaction proposals involving the transfer of NHS staff are paused while NHS England undertakes this consultation, unless they are supported by local unions.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the adequacy of the availability of specialist nurses for neurological conditions in rural areas.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Workforce planning, including decisions about the number and type of specialist nurses needed locally, is the responsibility of individual employers and their integrated care boards, which are best placed to assess the needs of their populations.

We continue to work with NHS England through programmes like Getting It Right First Time to support improvements in access to specialist care for patients with neurological conditions. We have also set up the United Kingdom‑wide Neuro Forum, which brings together the Department, NHS England, the devolved administrations, and the health services and Neurological Alliances of all four nations, to share best practice and address system-wide challenges, including neurology workforce challenges.

The Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan to set out action to create a workforce ready to deliver the transformed service set out in the 10-Year Health Plan. The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure the National Health Service has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it. We are working through how the plan will articulate the changes for different professional groups.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate he has made of the number of specialist Parkinson nurses working in Slough constituency.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department does not hold a central count of the number of specialist Parkinson’s nurses working in the Slough constituency. Workforce planning, including decisions about the number and type of specialist nurses needed locally, is the responsibility of individual employers and their integrated care boards, which are best placed to assess the needs of their populations.

We continue to work with NHS England through programmes like Getting It Right First Time to support improvements in access to specialist care for patients with Parkinson’s disease. We have also set up the United Kingdom‑wide Neuro Forum, which brings together the Department, NHS England, the devolved administrations, and health services and Neurological Alliances of all four nations to share best practice and address system-wide challenges, including neurology workforce challenges.

The Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan to set out action to create a workforce ready to deliver the transformed service set out in the 10-Year Health Plan. The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure the National Health Service has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it. We are working through how the plan will articulate the changes for different professional groups.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to increase the number of specialist Parkinson's nurses in Slough constituency.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department does not hold a central count of the number of specialist Parkinson’s nurses working in the Slough constituency. Workforce planning, including decisions about the number and type of specialist nurses needed locally, is the responsibility of individual employers and their integrated care boards, which are best placed to assess the needs of their populations.

We continue to work with NHS England through programmes like Getting It Right First Time to support improvements in access to specialist care for patients with Parkinson’s disease. We have also set up the United Kingdom‑wide Neuro Forum, which brings together the Department, NHS England, the devolved administrations, and health services and Neurological Alliances of all four nations to share best practice and address system-wide challenges, including neurology workforce challenges.

The Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan to set out action to create a workforce ready to deliver the transformed service set out in the 10-Year Health Plan. The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure the National Health Service has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it. We are working through how the plan will articulate the changes for different professional groups.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the removal of Council of Governors from foundation trusts on the governance of those trusts.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The removal of the councils of governors from National Health Service foundation trusts (FTs) forms part of the wider aim of the 10-Year Health Plan to ensure that hospitals put patient experiences and outcomes at the heart of their decision-making. The regulatory functions supporting oversight of the governance of FTs are underpinned by the NHS provider licence which will continue.

While governors elected by the public and other stakeholders have provided helpful advice and oversight for some FTs, we now need to move to a more dynamic model, drawing on patient, staff, and stakeholder insight. For example, approaches to engagement that better reflect local demographics and geography rather than a ‘one size fits all’ governor model, as well as supporting an increasing focus on the outcomes of the engagement, including the evidence that local people are involved in key decisions about how care is provided and their voices are listened to.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve public representation in NHS Foundation Trusts.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The removal of the councils of governors from National Health Service foundation trusts (FTs) forms part of the wider aim of the 10-Year Health Plan to ensure that hospitals put patient experiences and outcomes at the heart of their decision-making. The regulatory functions supporting oversight of the governance of FTs are underpinned by the NHS provider licence which will continue.

While governors elected by the public and other stakeholders have provided helpful advice and oversight for some FTs, we now need to move to a more dynamic model, drawing on patient, staff, and stakeholder insight. For example, approaches to engagement that better reflect local demographics and geography rather than a ‘one size fits all’ governor model, as well as supporting an increasing focus on the outcomes of the engagement, including the evidence that local people are involved in key decisions about how care is provided and their voices are listened to.

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Found: the National Health Service, for example, policy for England is determined by the Department of Health and Social Care

Found: Letter to the Permanent Secretary at the Department of Health and Social Care relating to Financial sustainability

Found: The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) contributed

Found: with digital technology suppliers HC 640 26th Tackling Violence against Women and Girls HC 644 25th DHSC

Found: cross-departmental Young Futures Plan, bringing together the Department for Work & Pensions, the Department of Health and Social Care

Found: more likely to be living with obesity as their peer in the least deprived fifth (Department of Health and Social Care

Found: Available at https://www.ncmd.info/publications/child-death-review-data-release-2025/ 3 DHSC (2025)

Found: opportunities in future, we are at a new point with NHS England being combined with the Department of Health and Social Care

Found: Targets can focus government attention, drive cross-department accountability (DWP, DfE, DHSC and local

Found: We believe that the Department of Work and Pensions should work with the Department of Health and Social Care

Found:  A cross-departmental Young Futures Plan bringing together DWP, DfE, DHSC and DCMS to align policy

Found: Perhaps the Department of Health and Social Care are the largest outlier, and I think you have questioned

Found: A cross-departmental Young Futures Plan bringing together DWP, DfE, DHSC and DCMS to align policy and

Found: Targets can focus government attention, drive cross-department accountability (DWP, DfE, DHSC and local

Found: We believe that the Department of Work and Pensions should work with the Department of Health and Social Care

Found: We welcome the Future Minds Roadmap recommendation that DHSC and DWP jointly expand this pilot, potentially

Found: National oversight and commissioning of palliative and end-of-life care services 8 Introduction 8 DHSC

Found: Community and early intervention • NHS England led a programme in collaboration with DHSC, HMPPS and

Found: MoJ & DHSC 28 Expand Home Office investment in a range of helpline services that provide support and

Found: Lord Vallance: I cannot comment on the DHSC contract with Palantir; I am not in that Department and

Found: Dr Rich Scott: Our funding from the Government comes from DHSC R&D capital funding, which is devolved

Found: There are examples in the MHRA and the Department of Health and Social Care of a regulatory framework

Found: to really focus on in the next year, is the reorganisation with NHS England coming together with DHSC

Found: departments that need longer- term thinking longer-term plans—10-year plans for departments such as the DHSC

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on whether the Maternity and Neonatal Investigation commissioned by the Department of Health and Social Care will report to Parliament on coronial investigations of stillbirths following the 2019 consultation.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

I would like to extend my deepest sympathies to all parents bereaved by baby loss. Bereavement is never easy, but the loss of a child is unimaginable, and we recognise the profound and lifelong impact this has on parents and families.

As I set out in my answer to the Right Honourable Member of 12 March, the wider landscape of maternity investigations has continued to evolve since the publication of the consultation on the coronial investigation of stillbirths in 2019 and the factual summary of responses published in 2023.

Most recently, this Government commissioned the independent investigation into NHS maternity and neonatal care led by Baroness Amos. As outlined in the investigation’s terms of reference, it will, amongst other issues, look to consider the potential role of coroners in the investigation of late term stillbirths (37 weeks or later). We are aware that Baroness Amos has confirmed she will publish her final report in June 2026.

As I have previously confirmed to the Right Honourable Member, the Department has not made a formal assessment of the delay in publishing a decision in this area. It is important that the Government’s published position on coronial investigations of stillbirths is fully informed by any findings and relevant recommendations the independent investigation makes, and more broadly that it supports the most effective model for maternity investigation, one that strengthens learning, improves accountability and delivers better outcomes for families.

Section 4 of the Civil Partnerships, Marriages and Deaths (Registration etc) Act 2019 provides the statutory framework to enable, by way of regulation, amendments to be made to the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 in respect of the investigation of stillbirths and makes provisions about the content of those regulations.

The Government’s 2019 consultation, and the factual summary in 2023 were jointly published by the Department for Health and Social Care and the Ministry of Justice. The Government intends to communicate its position on this issue after the investigation has published its final report.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 on trends in the number of sporting and cultural events in the UK.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

DCMS officials engage with the sector on the impacts of regulation. DCMS will continue to engage with DHSC on the removal of exemptions for temporary sporting and cultural events to ensure impacts to event delivery are mitigated as far as possible in line with the policy recommendations from the Manchester Arena Inquiry.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions she has had with the Department of Health and Social Care on the provision financial redress for families affected by sodium valproate during pregnancy.

Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

The Chancellor and the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care are in regular contact on a range of issues.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of a introducing an expedited process for frontline healthcare organisations requiring Certificates of Sponsorship to support visa renewals.

Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

Working alongside the DHSC-funded Regional Partnerships, UKVI have already established a process for expediting the processing of applications for the social care sector.

This supports visa renewals and those care workers who have been impacted by their employer's licence being revoked. This involves a letter of support from the relevant Director for Adult Social Services (DASS) being issued to a specific UKVI mailbox which receives preferential consideration over other priority services.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how the proposed fast‑track route for early intervention will be defined, including eligibility thresholds, time limits and approved evidence‑based programmes.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

To achieve this, we will work with the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC), and NHS England to enable better information sharing between health professionals and local authorities. This will speed up the process of matching children to the right specialist provision package and create a more direct route to specialist provision for those with the most complex needs at the earliest stage.

We have asked for feedback on this proposal as part of the consultation and will build on these responses to develop this policy in partnership with parents, local authorities, settings, DHSC and NHS England.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the potential impact of reforms to integrated care boards, including staffing reductions, on their role in SEND commissioning.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

The department will continue to work closely with the Department of Health and Social Care as well as NHS England to ensure that special educational needs and disabilities reforms are co-ordinated across education and health, and local leaders are supported to manage the transition effectively.

The government is also providing substantial, targeted investment to help local areas grow and strengthen their specialist workforce. Over the next three years, £1.8 billion will be made available to local area partnerships to develop and roll out the Experts at Hand offer.

We have also announced over £40 million to expand the specialist workforce, including £15 million for new advanced speech and language therapy practitioner roles, and £26 million to train at least 200 educational psychologists per year from 2026 and 2027.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to support those with back pain and musculoskeletal sick notes to get back to the workplace.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Musculoskeletal (MSK) problems were one of the leading causes of sickness absence in the UK in 2024. Early detection and prevention, including increasing access to employment advice, can support people with MSK conditions getting into and remaining in work.

The Government is committed to supporting disabled people and people with health conditions, including those with back pain and MSK conditions, with their employment journey. We therefore have a range of specialist initiatives to support individuals to stay in work and get back into work, including support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants, as well as Connect to Work and WorkWell.

As well as supporting people back into work, it is important that they are supported to successfully remain there. The Keep Britain Working review, published in November 2025, examined how employers can support healthier and more inclusive workplaces. Sir Charlie Mayfield was appointed to work in partnership with DWP, DBT and DHSC to oversee the implementation of his recommendations. Over 120 employers and ten regions are working with us through employer-led vanguard sprints, reshaping how health and disability are managed at work.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on utilising spare capacity in the chiropractic sector to support those with back pain and musculoskeletal sick notes back to the workforce.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Government is committed to supporting disabled people and people with health conditions, including back pain and musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions, with their employment journey. We therefore have a range of specialist initiatives to support individuals to stay in work and get back into work, including support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants, as well as Connect to Work and WorkWell.

As well as supporting people back into work, it is important that they are supported to successfully remain there. The Keep Britain Working review, published in November 2025, examined how employers can support healthier and more inclusive workplaces. Sir Charlie Mayfield was appointed to work in partnership with DWP, DBT and DHSC to oversee the implementation of his recommendations. Over 120 employers and ten regions are working with us through employer-led vanguard sprints, reshaping how health and disability are managed at work.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to help ensure that delays in deciding visa extension and in-country switching applications for existing care workers do not lead to the loss of experienced staff from care homes supporting vulnerable residents during the transition period to 2028.

Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

UK Visas and Immigration is not currently experiencing any delays in the processing of visa extensions or applications for switching in-country. Up to date processing times can be found at: Visa processing times: applications outside the UK - GOV.UK, and, Visa processing times: applications inside the UK - GOV.UK.

The adult social care sector enjoys direct access to UKVI, via Directors of Adult Social Services across England and DHSC funded Regional Partnerships. Contact information can be found here: Support offer to international ASC workers whose employer's sponsor licence has been revoked - GOV.UK.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many additional educational psychologists, speech and language therapists and occupational therapists will be required annually to deliver the Experts at Hand programme.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

The government is providing substantial, targeted investment to help local areas grow and strengthen their specialist workforce. Over the next three years, £1.8 billion will be made available to local area partnerships to develop and rollout of the Experts at Hand offer.

Local area partnerships will design and implement their own Experts at Hand models, tailored to local needs and workforce capacity. This will be supported by strong national oversight. The department will set the overall framework, provide guidance and tools, and work closely with local areas to ensure consistent quality.

​To support this, we have also announced £15 million for new speech and language therapy advanced practitioner roles, as well as continuing our investment in the educational psychology workforce with £26 million to train at least 200 educational psychologists per year from 2026 and 2027, building on previous investment.

The department knows that continuing to build the pipeline of speech and language therapists is essential. That is why we are working with the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England to improve access to community health services, including speech and language therapy, for children and young people with SEND.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Child Poverty Strategy, published on 5 December 2025, what steps they will take to prevent (1) families from being placed in bed and breakfast accommodation for more than six weeks, and (2) new-born babies from being placed in bed and breakfast accommodation immediately after leaving hospital.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

As set out in the National Plan to End Homelessness, this government is committed to tackling the detrimental impact of living in temporary accommodation on a child’s health, wellbeing and education outcomes. We will work with councils, supported by robust NHS pathways, to make sure safe and appropriate alternatives are available and used for newborn babies. We are also setting an ambition to cut school days lost for children in temporary accommodation, backed by data so that targeted support can be provided more effectively.

Legislation is clear B&B accommodation is never suitable for families with children. There may be instances when B&B accommodation may be the only immediate option, for example emergency placements made out of hours, however such placements should be rare and there is a six-week limit to family B&B placements.

To deliver upon our target to end the use of B&B accommodation for families over the legal six-week limit by the end of this Parliament, we will scale up our Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots into a programme with £30 million funding to tackle a wider range of poor practice. We also increasing the supply of good-quality temporary accommodation through the £950 million fourth round of the Local Authority Housing Fund.

The Government will be introducing a new duty on councils to notify schools, health visitors and GP practices where a child is in temporary accommodation. The intention of the temporary accommodation notification duty is to strengthen information sharing so that educational institutions and health providers are aware where children may require additional or different support and can seek to improve their outcomes. MHCLG, DfE and DHSC are working closely together to develop guidance to relevant bodies, to support effective implementation of this important measure. We are undertaking impact assessments for this measure, including a new burdens assessment for councils which is being informed through engagement with the sector, including councils who have piloted this approach.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Child Poverty Strategy, published on 5 December 2025, what assessment they have made of the suitability of bed and breakfast accommodation for (1) families, and (2) families with babies; and what are the legal limits on the use of bed and breakfast accommodation for families.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

As set out in the National Plan to End Homelessness, this government is committed to tackling the detrimental impact of living in temporary accommodation on a child’s health, wellbeing and education outcomes. We will work with councils, supported by robust NHS pathways, to make sure safe and appropriate alternatives are available and used for newborn babies. We are also setting an ambition to cut school days lost for children in temporary accommodation, backed by data so that targeted support can be provided more effectively.

Legislation is clear B&B accommodation is never suitable for families with children. There may be instances when B&B accommodation may be the only immediate option, for example emergency placements made out of hours, however such placements should be rare and there is a six-week limit to family B&B placements.

To deliver upon our target to end the use of B&B accommodation for families over the legal six-week limit by the end of this Parliament, we will scale up our Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots into a programme with £30 million funding to tackle a wider range of poor practice. We also increasing the supply of good-quality temporary accommodation through the £950 million fourth round of the Local Authority Housing Fund.

The Government will be introducing a new duty on councils to notify schools, health visitors and GP practices where a child is in temporary accommodation. The intention of the temporary accommodation notification duty is to strengthen information sharing so that educational institutions and health providers are aware where children may require additional or different support and can seek to improve their outcomes. MHCLG, DfE and DHSC are working closely together to develop guidance to relevant bodies, to support effective implementation of this important measure. We are undertaking impact assessments for this measure, including a new burdens assessment for councils which is being informed through engagement with the sector, including councils who have piloted this approach.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Child Poverty Strategy, published on 5 December 2025, what assessment they have made of how better data sharing between housing, schools and healthcare will improve support available to homeless children.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

As set out in the National Plan to End Homelessness, this government is committed to tackling the detrimental impact of living in temporary accommodation on a child’s health, wellbeing and education outcomes. We will work with councils, supported by robust NHS pathways, to make sure safe and appropriate alternatives are available and used for newborn babies. We are also setting an ambition to cut school days lost for children in temporary accommodation, backed by data so that targeted support can be provided more effectively.

Legislation is clear B&B accommodation is never suitable for families with children. There may be instances when B&B accommodation may be the only immediate option, for example emergency placements made out of hours, however such placements should be rare and there is a six-week limit to family B&B placements.

To deliver upon our target to end the use of B&B accommodation for families over the legal six-week limit by the end of this Parliament, we will scale up our Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots into a programme with £30 million funding to tackle a wider range of poor practice. We also increasing the supply of good-quality temporary accommodation through the £950 million fourth round of the Local Authority Housing Fund.

The Government will be introducing a new duty on councils to notify schools, health visitors and GP practices where a child is in temporary accommodation. The intention of the temporary accommodation notification duty is to strengthen information sharing so that educational institutions and health providers are aware where children may require additional or different support and can seek to improve their outcomes. MHCLG, DfE and DHSC are working closely together to develop guidance to relevant bodies, to support effective implementation of this important measure. We are undertaking impact assessments for this measure, including a new burdens assessment for councils which is being informed through engagement with the sector, including councils who have piloted this approach.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government, in regard to the Child Poverty Strategy, published on 5 December 2025, what assessment they have made of the impact of being placed in bed and breakfast accommodation beyond the six-week limit on children's health, education and life chances.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

As set out in the National Plan to End Homelessness, this government is committed to tackling the detrimental impact of living in temporary accommodation on a child’s health, wellbeing and education outcomes. We will work with councils, supported by robust NHS pathways, to make sure safe and appropriate alternatives are available and used for newborn babies. We are also setting an ambition to cut school days lost for children in temporary accommodation, backed by data so that targeted support can be provided more effectively.

Legislation is clear B&B accommodation is never suitable for families with children. There may be instances when B&B accommodation may be the only immediate option, for example emergency placements made out of hours, however such placements should be rare and there is a six-week limit to family B&B placements.

To deliver upon our target to end the use of B&B accommodation for families over the legal six-week limit by the end of this Parliament, we will scale up our Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots into a programme with £30 million funding to tackle a wider range of poor practice. We also increasing the supply of good-quality temporary accommodation through the £950 million fourth round of the Local Authority Housing Fund.

The Government will be introducing a new duty on councils to notify schools, health visitors and GP practices where a child is in temporary accommodation. The intention of the temporary accommodation notification duty is to strengthen information sharing so that educational institutions and health providers are aware where children may require additional or different support and can seek to improve their outcomes. MHCLG, DfE and DHSC are working closely together to develop guidance to relevant bodies, to support effective implementation of this important measure. We are undertaking impact assessments for this measure, including a new burdens assessment for councils which is being informed through engagement with the sector, including councils who have piloted this approach.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government, in regard to the Child Poverty Strategy, published on 5 December 2025, what measures they will use to assess the impact of the notification system for councils to notify schools, health visitors and GPs when a child is placed in temporary accommodation.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

As set out in the National Plan to End Homelessness, this government is committed to tackling the detrimental impact of living in temporary accommodation on a child’s health, wellbeing and education outcomes. We will work with councils, supported by robust NHS pathways, to make sure safe and appropriate alternatives are available and used for newborn babies. We are also setting an ambition to cut school days lost for children in temporary accommodation, backed by data so that targeted support can be provided more effectively.

Legislation is clear B&B accommodation is never suitable for families with children. There may be instances when B&B accommodation may be the only immediate option, for example emergency placements made out of hours, however such placements should be rare and there is a six-week limit to family B&B placements.

To deliver upon our target to end the use of B&B accommodation for families over the legal six-week limit by the end of this Parliament, we will scale up our Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots into a programme with £30 million funding to tackle a wider range of poor practice. We also increasing the supply of good-quality temporary accommodation through the £950 million fourth round of the Local Authority Housing Fund.

The Government will be introducing a new duty on councils to notify schools, health visitors and GP practices where a child is in temporary accommodation. The intention of the temporary accommodation notification duty is to strengthen information sharing so that educational institutions and health providers are aware where children may require additional or different support and can seek to improve their outcomes. MHCLG, DfE and DHSC are working closely together to develop guidance to relevant bodies, to support effective implementation of this important measure. We are undertaking impact assessments for this measure, including a new burdens assessment for councils which is being informed through engagement with the sector, including councils who have piloted this approach.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether guidance on screen use will include recommendations on preventing eye conditions such as myopia and dry eye associated with excessive screen use.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The department and the Department of Health and Social Care are jointly working to produce and publish new practical, evidence-informed guidance on screen time for early years. An early years screen time advisory group of child health and development specialists has been convened to shape the guidance, which will also be informed by the perspectives of parents and carers. And as I committed to in the House, I will consider how we will support children with eye conditions.

In addition, amid concerns that young people’s lives are dominated by time in front of devices, the government will support families by producing evidence-based screen time guidance for parents of children aged five to 16. Experts are considering a wide range of evidence, and the guidance will be published in due course.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether guidance on screen time and social media use will include the potential impact of excessive use of screens on sight loss.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The department and the Department of Health and Social Care are jointly working to produce and publish new practical, evidence-informed guidance on screen time for early years. An early years screen time advisory group of child health and development specialists has been convened to shape the guidance, which will also be informed by the perspectives of parents and carers. And as I committed to in the House, I will consider how we will support children with eye conditions.

In addition, amid concerns that young people’s lives are dominated by time in front of devices, the government will support families by producing evidence-based screen time guidance for parents of children aged five to 16. Experts are considering a wide range of evidence, and the guidance will be published in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 4 March to Question 115508 on Strategic Defence Review, how many workshops have taken place involving MOD, DHSC and UK health services as of 10 March 2026.

Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

Between February 2025 and 10 March 2026, there have been four multi-day workshops involving the Ministry of Defence, the Department of Health and Social Care and UK health services to explore the UK’s ability to deal with casualties across a range of scenarios up to and including warfighting.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with sporting (a) bodies, (b) venues and (c) events organisers on proposed changes to the role of the Care Quality Commission.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Manchester Arena Inquiry Volume Two report recommended the government make changes to the law to enable the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to regulate event healthcare at sporting venues and gymnasiums and under temporary arrangements at sporting and cultural events to ensure public safety.

The government and CQC has engaged a range of stakeholders within the health, sports and events sector. The government has also held a public consultation which fed into the development of these regulatory changes. The government and CQC continues this engagement, where the CQC will also develop further guidance for Treatment of Disease, Disorder, or Injury providers to support registering with the CQC.

DCMS officials regularly engage with the sector on the impacts of regulation, and will continue to do so with DHSC on the removal of exemptions for temporary sporting and cultural events, to ensure impacts to event delivery are mitigated as far as possible in line with the policy recommendations from the Manchester Arena Inquiry.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on incorporating (a) evidence on the maternal and neonatal risks from extreme heat and (b) measures to protect pregnant people and infants during heatwaves into the UK’s National Adaptation Programme.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra is working across Government to reset the climate adaptation framework and safeguard people, livelihoods, and the natural environment. Defra is setting stronger objectives and improving governance and monitoring, to help the Government turn evidence into action.

The Department of Health and Social Care and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA)recognise there are risks to pregnant women caused by exposure to extreme high temperatures, set out in the Adverse Weather and Health Plan Equity Review and Impact Assessment 2024. This includes an assessment on stillbirth, pre-term birth and maternal health complications.

UKHSA provides a weather-health alerting system for England, which alerts the public (including specific vulnerable groups such as pregnant women) and public sector organisations to prepare for impacts of adverse weather, including high temperatures. Risks to health are communicated via heat-health alerts.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care regarding the potential merits of incorporating (a) evidence on the maternal and neonatal risks from extreme heat and (b) measures to protect pregnant people and infants during heatwaves into the UK’s National Adaptation Programme.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra is working across Government to reset the climate adaptation framework and safeguard people, livelihoods, and our natural environment. Defra is setting stronger objectives and improving governance and monitoring, to help Government turn evidence into action.

The Department of Health and Social Care and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) recognises that there are risks to pregnant women caused by exposure to extreme high temperatures which are set out in the Adverse Weather and Health Plan Equity Review and Impact Assessment 2024. This includes an assessment on stillbirth, pre-term birth and maternal health complications.

UKHSA provides a weather-health alerting system for England, which alerts the public (including specific vulnerable groups such as pregnant women) and public sector organisations to prepare for impacts of adverse weather, including high temperatures. Risks to health are communicated via heat-health alerts.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on support for the life sciences sector.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Life Sciences Sector Plan, published in July 2025, launched a ten year programme to cement the UK’s position as a global life sciences leader. The Secretary of State is in regular contact with Cabinet colleagues, and we have strengthened the Office for Life Sciences as a trilateral unit across DSIT, DHSC and DBT, bringing together health, industrial strategy and innovation, and appointed an Executive Chair, Steve Bates, to provide leadership and accountability.

This collaborative approach is delivering, with the UK securing multibillion pound private investment, building new research infrastructure, scaling manufacturing, streamlining regulation, strengthening clinical trials and driving medical breakthroughs.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to ensure a) parents and b) carers are aware that they can request to view DBS certificates when recruiting individuals to work with i) children and ii) vulnerable adults.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

In January the following news story Self-employed workers and personal employees can now apply for Enhanced DBS checks - GOV.UK announced the legislative changes which now allow self‑employed individuals, as well as personal employees who are hired directly by an individual or family, to obtain enhanced criminal record checks with barred list information issued by the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), when they work closely with children or vulnerable adults. The article explained that parents and carers who employ a self‑employed worker or personal employee in an eligible role can ask to see that individual’s enhanced DBS certificate, including barred list information; it also included links to further guidance.

Alongside this, DBS has updated its published guidance on GOV.UK to reflect the change:

• DBS checks for self-employed people and personal employees - GOV.UK
• Private individuals employing self-employed workers or personal employees - GOV.UK
• DBS application form: guide for counter signatories - GOV.UK

The Department for Education (DfE) has published guidance for parents and carers to help them make informed decisions on Out-of-School settings for their children. This highlights information on the safeguarding measures providers should have in place and questions to ask, including on staff/volunteer DBS checks.

Similarly, the DfE has provided explanatory posters for providers to put up in their setting. These include a safeguarding checklist and prompts parents to ask about appropriate staff/volunteer checks, including DBS checks.

The DfE also held a Call for Evidence in 2025, considering how to further improve safeguarding standards in Out-of-School settings, including questions on the issue of how providers communicate their safeguarding practices with parents. DfE will respond in due course.

The Department of Health and Social Care is working with Skills for Care to update guidance for people who employ personal assistants in line with the recent changes in access to enhanced DBS checks. The current guidance is published in the Employing PAs Toolkit in Skills for Care’s website, and further updates are due imminently.

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