Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of inequalities in access to NHS weight-loss medicines between people living in the most and least deprived areas of England; what data they hold on prescribing and access by level of deprivation; and whether they intend to publish an assessment of these inequalities.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The specific data requested is not centrally held by the Department, but on the wider issue raised, I refer the Noble Baroness to the answer provided in the House of Commons on 2 June in response to Question 2751, which, for ease of reference, is reproduced below.
“Integrated care boards (ICBs) are legally required to make funding available for medicines recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in line with NICE guidance and the NICE Funding Variation for tirzepatide.
“NHS England is supporting ICBs to implement local pathways for the assessment, prescribing, and management of tirzepatide, and has centrally commissioned wraparound support for eligible patients. It has also provided additional funding in 2025/26 and 2026/27 to support towards the cost of prescribing weight loss medicines. From 2026/27, NHS England has introduced new Quality and Outcomes Framework indicators, with additional funding to support implementation of obesity medicine pathways in primary care.
“NHS England monitors implementation through routine engagement with systems. There are currently no plans for NHS England to review the methodology used to allocate funding to ICBs for these services.”
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking in response to the Office for Statistics Regulation's correspondence of 19 October on the reporting of progress towards universal fracture liaison service coverage by 2030; whether they intend to publish consistent annual statistics on coverage; and how they intend to define and measure coverage across integrated care boards and NHS trusts.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department appreciates all guidance from the Office for Statistics Regulation, and routinely takes their advice and recommendations into account when preparing relevant statements and publications. On the wider issues raised, I refer the Noble Baroness to the answer provided on 1 September in response to Question HL2030, which, for ease of reference, is reproduced below.
Our 10-Year Health Plan is clear that the future National Health Service must be more preventative, more integrated, and deliver more care closer to home, including for people with osteoporosis.
The Plan committed to rolling out Fracture Liaison Services across every part of the country by 2030, and we are clear that everyone at risk of fragility fractures should be able to benefit from high-quality, timely care that supports prevention, early intervention, and effective management. We are pursuing those goals across the whole pathway of fracture prevention, including improving access to diagnosis, supporting the adoption of effective treatments, and encouraging local systems to develop services that identify people at the highest risk of future fractures and intervene early.
Earlier this year, the Government announced £2.6 million of funding for 20 new DEXA bone density scanners across England. Tens of thousands of patients will benefit from faster access to bone scans as a result, helping to ensure that people with bone conditions, such as osteoporosis, get diagnosed earlier. This builds on the first wave of 13 DEXA scanners announced last year. In 2025, over 21,000 extra DEXA scans were delivered in England compared with 2024.
We continue to work closely with NHS England to improve access to fracture prevention services and to explore the best ways of supporting local systems to deliver high-quality care which meets the needs of their populations. The Government has been clear that integrated care boards are best placed to shape services for their localities and we have set expectations, through the Renewed Women’s Health Strategy, that they should prioritise community-based models when commissioning new services.
Progress in this area can be monitored through activity and outcomes reported through the Fracture Liaison Service Database.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the forthcoming National Maternity and Neonatal Action Plan will include specific measures to improve the prevention, detection and treatment of postpartum haemorrhage.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
A national action plan is currently being developed through the National Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce, chaired by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and its expert reference groups. This will drive systemic and sustained improvement across maternity and neonatal care, including postnatal care.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their expected timetable for concluding the consultation on draft regulations restricting high-risk cosmetic procedures in England, publishing their response and laying those draft regulations before the House.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department’s consultation on the draft regulations will close on 13 January 2027, after which we will set out next steps in the normal way.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of existing safeguards against the promotion on social media to children and young people of potentially harmful weight-loss products, including diet and detox supplements and illegally marketed weight-loss medicines; and what steps they are taking to address any identified gaps in monitoring and enforcement.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
Prescription-only weight-loss medicines cannot be advertised to the general public, including through social media. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has powers to investigate and take appropriate action where breaches of relevant legislation concerning medicines are identified. Under the Online Safety Act platforms must protect users from illegal content and children from harmful content including content which encourages, promotes, or provides instructions for eating disorders. We are going further by banning social media offering their services to under 16s.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to improve the identification and recording of NHS treatments for complications arising from cosmetic or other elective surgery undertaken overseas; and when they expect to establish a baseline against which the effectiveness of public guidance on the risks of such procedures can be evaluated.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government takes the issues arising from medical tourism very seriously and we urge anyone considering medical procedures abroad to review our travel advice and the relevant guidance from the National Health Service and other professional bodies. We are also exploring ways to improve our understanding of the scale of the cost to the NHS, but at present, the data is not available to establish the baseline proposed.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Merron on 23 March (HL15676), when the independent evaluation of the Core Competency Framework for maternity and neonatal staff commissioned through the National Institute for Health and Care Research will be completed and its findings published; and whether it includes an assessment of the availability of protected training time, staffing and resource constraints, and variation in training provision across NHS trusts.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Research commissioned an independent evaluation of the Core Competency Framework for maternity and neonatal staff. Data collection was completed in August 2026, and the research team is now analysing and disseminating its findings. Two papers have been published to date, with further findings being prepared for publication.
The evaluation is examining the implementation and impact of the framework across maternity and neonatal services in England, including variation in training provision and the barriers and facilitators to its implementation. This includes consideration of organisational and workforce factors affecting implementation.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what national data are collected on the time taken to inform patients in England of clinically significant diagnostic test results following verification of those results; whether NHS England has issued guidance on the maximum acceptable interval for communicating such results to patients; and what action is taken when delays in communication pose a risk to patient safety.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department does not hold this data centrally.
Prompt access to diagnostic test results is a Government priority. Digital imaging reports should be automatically available to patients four weeks after formal verification on the Radiology Information System or equivalent. NHS England’s March 2025 guidance on patient digital notification of diagnostic imaging reports is available on the NHS England website in an online-only format.
National Health Service trust patient safety leads, or integrated care boards where trusts have no dedicated team, are responsible for taking action when communication poses a risk to patient safety.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the answer by the then-Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury on 23 June (HC Deb col 180), what discussions they have had with pharmaceutical companies about re-engaging with compassionate use and early access schemes.
Answered by Lord Pitt-Watson - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government has heard concerns from patient groups and industry that the application of VAT to free-of-charge donations of medicines has impacted patient access. On 23rd June 2026, the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury announced that we will bring forward a new approach to address this issue, which will consist either of changes to VAT rules or a reimbursement scheme.
Since then, HM Treasury officials have been working at pace with the Department of Health and Social Care and industry to develop a solution that secures patients’ access to innovative medicines, including through early access and compassionate use scheme.
The new approach will be permanent and backdated to 23rd June, supporting firms to continue making donations now.
The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events. The Government will set out the details of the new approach at the earliest opportunity.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the expected timetable for implementing the new approach to VAT on free-of-charge donations of medicines.
Answered by Lord Pitt-Watson - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government has heard concerns from patient groups and industry that the application of VAT to free-of-charge donations of medicines has impacted patient access. On 23rd June 2026, the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury announced that we will bring forward a new approach to address this issue, which will consist either of changes to VAT rules or a reimbursement scheme.
Since then, HM Treasury officials have been working at pace with the Department of Health and Social Care and industry to develop a solution that secures patients’ access to innovative medicines, including through early access and compassionate use scheme.
The new approach will be permanent and backdated to 23rd June, supporting firms to continue making donations now.
The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events. The Government will set out the details of the new approach at the earliest opportunity.