Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
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 help ensure that art psychotherapy and other Allied Health Professions are recognised as a delivery partner for the 10-year Health Plan for England .
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to bring public awareness to the role Art Psychotherapists and other Allied Health Professionals have across the health and care system.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
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 help promote the role of art psychotherapists in addressing issues related to mental health and wellbeing.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed
The National Health Service is expanding access to timely, high‑quality mental health support, including psychological therapies, as part of the 10 Year Health Plan shifts towards prevention, early intervention, and community‑based care. This includes continued expansion of NHS Talking Therapies and the development of new community mental health models that bring together multidisciplinary teams to deliver personalised, holistic care.
The Government has actively collaborated with Allied Health Professional (AHP) bodies, including those representing arts therapies, to enhance the emphasis on mental health and wellbeing. This partnership is reflected in the United Kingdom AHP Public Health Strategic Framework 2025 to 2030, which provides a clear vision and actions for integrating public health approaches into clinical practice.
We need a diverse workforce with the skills and expertise needed to meet a wide range of mental health needs and improve outcomes for patients. We are therefore investing in, and growing, the mental health workforce, with over 8,000 additional mental health staff recruited since July 2024. We will also publish 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.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
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 improve access to maternity pathways with tailored support for pregnant people experiencing homelessness.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to help ensure representation from Allied Health Professions in the Department for Health and Social Care structure that will replace NHS England.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The proposed new Department is not simply a merger of the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England, where both organisations’ current functions are added together. Rather, it is a fundamental redesign of the size, shape, and role of the centre in relation to the rest of the health and care system. The proposed abolition of NHS England and associated transfer and modification of functions is subject to legislation and the will of Parliament. We will be engaging with partners inside and outside the organisations as the process to design the future Department continues.
Allied Health Professional representation will be considered during the detailed design process for the future Department and will ensure the future Department will effectively discharge its accountabilities for workforce education, training, and professional leadership for all of the clinical professions, including the Allied Health Profession.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
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 improve outcomes and survival rates after heart and lung transplants.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed
The Government recognises the importance of ensuring timely and equitable access to heart and lung transplantation services and of improving patient outcomes.
Access to transplantation is based on nationally agreed clinical criteria, with organs allocated through a national system managed by NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) to ensure equity according to clinical need. NHSBT publishes data annually on access and outcomes in its organ-specific reports, which are available at the following link:
https://www.odt.nhs.uk/statistics-and-reports/annual-activity-report/
This data shows good overall post-transplant survival rates, alongside some variation between centres. In addition, the data shows no evidence of geographical variation beyond chance for heart and lung transplantation rates, and some variation in lung registration rates. Further work is needed to understand and address unwarranted variation in access to transplantation.
Variation in patient outcomes, including longer‑term survival and listing outcomes, are reviewed through established NHSBT and NHS England clinical governance processes, including routine outcome review and centre‑specific follow‑up where indicated. The National Transplant Clinical Panel has been established to provide expert clinical interpretation of transplant outcome data to support oversight where issues of statistical variation are identified.
To improve access and outcomes, NHS England has established a national improvement programme, informed by the Implementation Steering Group for Organ Utilisation’s Cardiothoracic Information Collation Exercise. This programme, alongside NHS England’s commissioning structures, includes work to improve referral pathways, organ utilisation, and service consistency, through strengthened peer review processes, an audit of organ acceptance practices, and work with transplant centres to support consistent decision-making. Further information on NHS England’s national improvement programme and the Implementation Steering Group for Organ Utilisation’s Cardiothoracic Information Collation Exercise is available, respectively, at the following two links:
While progress has been made, including increases in transplant activity and reductions in waiting lists, NHS England continues to work with partners to ensure services are consistent, resilient, and able to meet patient need across the country.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
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 regional disparities in England for access to and outcomes of heart and lung transplants.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed
The Government recognises the importance of ensuring timely and equitable access to heart and lung transplantation services and of improving patient outcomes.
Access to transplantation is based on nationally agreed clinical criteria, with organs allocated through a national system managed by NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) to ensure equity according to clinical need. NHSBT publishes data annually on access and outcomes in its organ-specific reports, which are available at the following link:
https://www.odt.nhs.uk/statistics-and-reports/annual-activity-report/
This data shows good overall post-transplant survival rates, alongside some variation between centres. In addition, the data shows no evidence of geographical variation beyond chance for heart and lung transplantation rates, and some variation in lung registration rates. Further work is needed to understand and address unwarranted variation in access to transplantation.
Variation in patient outcomes, including longer‑term survival and listing outcomes, are reviewed through established NHSBT and NHS England clinical governance processes, including routine outcome review and centre‑specific follow‑up where indicated. The National Transplant Clinical Panel has been established to provide expert clinical interpretation of transplant outcome data to support oversight where issues of statistical variation are identified.
To improve access and outcomes, NHS England has established a national improvement programme, informed by the Implementation Steering Group for Organ Utilisation’s Cardiothoracic Information Collation Exercise. This programme, alongside NHS England’s commissioning structures, includes work to improve referral pathways, organ utilisation, and service consistency, through strengthened peer review processes, an audit of organ acceptance practices, and work with transplant centres to support consistent decision-making. Further information on NHS England’s national improvement programme and the Implementation Steering Group for Organ Utilisation’s Cardiothoracic Information Collation Exercise is available, respectively, at the following two links:
While progress has been made, including increases in transplant activity and reductions in waiting lists, NHS England continues to work with partners to ensure services are consistent, resilient, and able to meet patient need across the country.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
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 access to heart and lung transplants across England.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed
The Government recognises the importance of ensuring timely and equitable access to heart and lung transplantation services and of improving patient outcomes.
Access to transplantation is based on nationally agreed clinical criteria, with organs allocated through a national system managed by NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) to ensure equity according to clinical need. NHSBT publishes data annually on access and outcomes in its organ-specific reports, which are available at the following link:
https://www.odt.nhs.uk/statistics-and-reports/annual-activity-report/
This data shows good overall post-transplant survival rates, alongside some variation between centres. In addition, the data shows no evidence of geographical variation beyond chance for heart and lung transplantation rates, and some variation in lung registration rates. Further work is needed to understand and address unwarranted variation in access to transplantation.
Variation in patient outcomes, including longer‑term survival and listing outcomes, are reviewed through established NHSBT and NHS England clinical governance processes, including routine outcome review and centre‑specific follow‑up where indicated. The National Transplant Clinical Panel has been established to provide expert clinical interpretation of transplant outcome data to support oversight where issues of statistical variation are identified.
To improve access and outcomes, NHS England has established a national improvement programme, informed by the Implementation Steering Group for Organ Utilisation’s Cardiothoracic Information Collation Exercise. This programme, alongside NHS England’s commissioning structures, includes work to improve referral pathways, organ utilisation, and service consistency, through strengthened peer review processes, an audit of organ acceptance practices, and work with transplant centres to support consistent decision-making. Further information on NHS England’s national improvement programme and the Implementation Steering Group for Organ Utilisation’s Cardiothoracic Information Collation Exercise is available, respectively, at the following two links:
While progress has been made, including increases in transplant activity and reductions in waiting lists, NHS England continues to work with partners to ensure services are consistent, resilient, and able to meet patient need across the country.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the efficacy of support provided to patients before and after heart and lung transplants, including follow-up care and psychological support.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed
The Government recognises the importance of ensuring timely and equitable access to heart and lung transplantation services and of improving patient outcomes.
Heart and lung transplant services provide multidisciplinary assessment, ongoing follow‑up, and access to psychological support where clinically indicated, ensuring that care addresses both physical and mental health needs across the patient pathway, before and after transplantation. The quality and effectiveness of care are monitored through national audit, service review, and patient feedback.
Evidence has identified variation in how aspects of service specifications and patient engagement are implemented across transplant services. This was highlighted in the Implementation Steering Group for Organ Utilisation’s Improving Patient Engagement in Organ Transplantation: Recommendations for Best Practice report, which sets out areas for improvement in consistency and patient experience. This report is available at the following link:
NHS England is working with patient representatives, NHS Blood and Transplant, and transplant centres through a national improvement programme which includes work to address unwarranted variation and strengthen holistic, patient‑centred care before and after transplantation, in addition to wider work to improve access, workforce sustainability, and service resilience.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
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 need to introduce transparency requirements for the funding of nutrition research.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed
The Department funds research on health and social care through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including nutrition.
The Department is committed to funding research that has robust ethical oversight and independent governance. The NIHR ensures this by requiring studies, where appropriate, to gain approval from the Health Research Authority, which is responsible for overseeing ethical, governance, and legal aspects of research in England. Studies must also comply with the UK Policy Framework for Health and Social Care Research, which outlines the principles of good practice in the management and conduct of health and social care research in the United Kingdom.