Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to reply to the letter from Lord Balfe to the Treasury sent on 18 September.

Answered by Baroness Gustafsson - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

I apologise to the Noble Lord for the delay in responding to his letter of 18 September. A reply has now been sent.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to review the ministerial code regarding declarations of interest to improve public confidence in elected officials.

Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Prime Minister published a new Ministerial Code on 6 November 2024 which sets out the standards expected of all government ministers. Part B, Chapter 3 of the Ministerial Code details the established process in place for the declaration and management of interests held by ministers. This ensures that steps are taken to avoid or mitigate any actual or perceived conflicts of interest.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the report by the Independent Monitoring Boards The impact of a crumbling prison estate on prisoners published in November, what plans they have (1) to consider the potential merits of returning prison maintenance to the public sector, and (2) to review the value of privatised services within the remit of the Ministry of Justice.

Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Government has a programme of work underway that will put in place new contracts for the provision of maintenance services for prison, these will be competitively tendered.

The value and performance of the Department’s private-sector service providers is reviewed through routine contract and performance management and, in addition, as contracts are approaching expiry so decisions about whether to continue to outsource services can be taken.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government when, if at all, they expect that the drug abiraterone will be available on NHS prescription in England; and why NHS England has not made it available while it is in Scotland and Wales.

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

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for developing authoritative, evidence-based recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new, licenced medicines represent a clinically and cost-effective use of resources.

The NICE has published guidance recommending abiraterone for the treatment of metastatic hormone-relapsed prostate cancer before chemotherapy is indicated, and for castration-resistant metastatic prostate cancer previously treated with a docetaxel-containing regimen. NHS England funds abiraterone for these indications of prostate cancer in line with the NICE’s recommendations, making it routinely available for clinicians to prescribe to eligible patients.

The NICE was unable to recommend abiraterone for use in the treatment of newly diagnosed, hormone-sensitive, metastatic prostate cancer in its guidance published in 2021. However, the NICE is preparing to review this technology appraisal to determine whether to recommend abiraterone for this indication at current prices, following the patent expiry for abiraterone. Further information will be available on the NICE's website in due course.

Pending the outcome of this review, NHS England has published an interim clinical commissioning policy on 13 December 2024 that will make abiraterone acetate and prednisolone available as a routine commissioning treatment option, within the criteria set out in the policy for patients with newly diagnosed high-risk hormone-sensitive metastatic prostate cancer.

Health is a devolved matter and decisions on the availability of medicines in Scotland and Wales are a matter for their own administration.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 20 November 2024 to Question 13775 on Hospices: Children, what his timescale is for announcing funding arrangements for the Children's Hospice Grant for 2025/26.

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

We are aware that clarity on the 2025/26 funding arrangements is needed to help children’s hospices, as they confirm their budgets. I have met NHS England, Together for Short Lives, and one of the co-chairs of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Children Who Need Palliative Care, Lord Balfe, and discussed these issues at length.

The Department is working to confirm funding arrangements as a matter of urgency.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 21 October 2024 to Question 8935 on Hospices: Children, what his planned timetable is for a decision on the future of that funding.

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

While 2023/24 marked the final year of the Children’s Hospice Grant in its previous format, in 2024/25, NHS England continued to provide an additional £25 million of funding for children and young people’s hospices, maintaining the level of grant funding from 2023/24. For the first time, this funding was distributed by integrated care boards (ICBs), on behalf of NHS England, rather than being centrally administered as before.

The Department and NHS England are aware that the shift to ICB distributed funding in 2024/25 has not been as smooth a transition as we would have hoped. However, we are working closely with NHS England to resolve any remaining issues with the 2024/25 funding. Furthermore, I am working very closely with NHS England to get the funding arrangements for 2025/26 confirmed as a matter of urgency.

I recently met NHS England, Together for Short Lives, and one of the co-chairs of the Children Who Need Palliative Care All-Party Parliamentary Groups, Lord Balfe, to discuss children’s palliative and end of life care, and this funding stream was discussed at length at that meeting.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of delays experienced by children’s hospices in receiving the £25 million annual NHS England funding, which is now distributed by Integrated Care Boards, and what steps they are taking to ensure timely access to this funding in future years.

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

While 2023/24 marked the final year of the Children’s Hospice Grant in its previous format, in 2024/25, NHS England continued to provide an additional £25 million of funding for children and young people’s hospices, maintaining the level of grant funding from 2023/24. For the first time, this funding was transacted by integrated care boards (ICBs), on behalf of NHS England, rather than being centrally administered as before.

The Department and NHS England are aware that the shift to the dissemination of funding via ICBs in 2024/25 has not been as smooth a transition as we would have hoped. However, we are working closely with NHS England to resolve any remaining issues to the 2024/25 funding, and we are also jointly considering the future of this important funding stream beyond 2024/25.

The Minister of State for Care recently met NHS England, Together for Short Lives, and one of the co-chairs of the Children Who Need Palliative Care All-Party Parliamentary Group, Lord Balfe, to discuss children’s palliative and end of life care, and this funding stream was discussed at length at that meeting.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which children’s hospices rely on the annual £25 million funding from NHS England; and what plans they have to secure this funding beyond 2024–25 to prevent a shortfall in services.

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

While 2023/24 marked the final year of the Children’s Hospice Grant in its previous format, in 2024/25, NHS England continued to provide an additional £25 million of funding for children and young people’s hospices, maintaining the level of grant funding from 2023/24. For the first time, this funding was transacted by integrated care boards (ICBs), on behalf of NHS England, rather than being centrally administered as before.

The Department and NHS England are aware that the shift to the dissemination of funding via ICBs in 2024/25 has not been as smooth a transition as we would have hoped. However, we are working closely with NHS England to resolve any remaining issues to the 2024/25 funding, and we are also jointly considering the future of this important funding stream beyond 2024/25.

The Minister of State for Care recently met NHS England, Together for Short Lives, and one of the co-chairs of the Children Who Need Palliative Care All-Party Parliamentary Group, Lord Balfe, to discuss children’s palliative and end of life care, and this funding stream was discussed at length at that meeting.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure that children's hospices can continue to provide lifeline care if the £25 million annual funding from NHS England is not extended beyond 2024–25.

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

While 2023/24 marked the final year of the Children’s Hospice Grant in its previous format, in 2024/25, NHS England continued to provide an additional £25 million of funding for children and young people’s hospices, maintaining the level of grant funding from 2023/24. For the first time, this funding was transacted by integrated care boards (ICBs), on behalf of NHS England, rather than being centrally administered as before.

The Department and NHS England are aware that the shift to the dissemination of funding via ICBs in 2024/25 has not been as smooth a transition as we would have hoped. However, we are working closely with NHS England to resolve any remaining issues to the 2024/25 funding, and we are also jointly considering the future of this important funding stream beyond 2024/25.

The Minister of State for Care recently met NHS England, Together for Short Lives, and one of the co-chairs of the Children Who Need Palliative Care All-Party Parliamentary Group, Lord Balfe, to discuss children’s palliative and end of life care, and this funding stream was discussed at length at that meeting.