Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with NICE on its decision not to recommend the use of donanemab and lecanemab for Alzheimer's patients by the NHS.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Department officials regularly discuss a range of issues with colleagues in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), including the progress of specific appraisals. NICE develops its guidance independently in line with its established methods and processes, and the Department is not able to direct NICE as to the substance of its recommendations. These are very difficult decisions to make, and it is right that they are taken by an independent committee on the basis of the available evidence.
NICE has not yet published final guidance on either lecanemab or donanemab. NICE published final draft guidance on 19 June 2025, and stakeholders now have an opportunity to lodge an appeal. NICE currently expects to publish final guidance in July this year.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the food strategy promotes access to (a) unprocessed and (b) minimally processed foods for (i) children and (ii) low-income families.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The food strategy will identify root causes of key problems such as food poverty and unhealthy diets and articulate the outcomes we want from the food system, enabling the Government, civil society, and the food industry work to shared goals and priorities. Health is one of our four priority areas. A key outcome will be more easily accessible and affordable, safe, nutritious, healthy food to tackle diet-related ill health, helping to give children the best start in life and help adults live longer healthier lives, including people on low and middle incomes. Delivering the food strategy means changing the way the food system works for the better and replacing the junk food cycle’ identified by Henry Dimbleby with a ‘good food cycle’.
The food strategy is aligned with and supports the Government programme, Plan for Change and Missions. The food sector has a crucial role to play in supporting our health Mission by tackling diet-related ill health and addressing poor diets. The Government respects individual autonomy in making dietary choices and also wants to encourage food manufacturers to provide nutritious, sustainable food options and empower consumers to make informed decisions about their diets, to deliver better health outcomes for consumers.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if the Government will convene a meeting between (a) Boeing, (b) Airbus, (c) Bombardier, (d) GMB, (e) Unite the Union and (f) other relevant stakeholders on the proposed sale of Spirit AeroSystems, in the context of (i) its contribution the UK aerospace sector and (ii) potential job losses; and if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of Government fiscal intervention in this matter.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department for Business and Trade recognises the importance of Spirit AeroSystems’ Short Brothers to the Northern Ireland economy, the wider UK aerospace sector and its future potential in the global market. Commercial negotiations are ongoing and the Department will continue to stay engaged with all parties to work for the best outcome and to support future growth.
Airbus’ decision to expand its UK operations in Belfast and Prestwick will secure high value jobs and is welcome news for the UK’s aerospace sector and a vote of confidence in Northern Ireland’s and Scotland’s world-class manufacturing expertise.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of raising the income tax threshold to £20,000 for pensioners.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is committed to making sure older people can live with the dignity and respect they deserve in retirement. The State Pension is the foundation of the support available to them. Over the course of this Parliament, the yearly amount of the full new State Pension is currently projected to go up by around £1,900 based on the Office for Budget Responsibility's latest forecast.
The Government is committed to keeping people’s taxes as low as possible while ensuring fiscal responsibility. Raising the personal allowance to £20,000 for all taxpayers would cost more than £50bn, roughly equal to the UK defence budget.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
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 ensure people living with (a) arthritis and (b) musculoskeletal conditions have access to the (i) treatment and (ii) support they need.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Services for those with musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions, including arthritis, are commissioned locally by integrated care boards (ICBs). The Department expects MSK services to be fully incorporated into integrated care system planning and decision-making.
As announced in the Get Britain Working white paper, we are delivering the joint Department for Work and Pensions, Department of Health and Social Care, and NHS England Getting It Right First-Time (GIRFT) MSK Community Delivery Programme. Launched in December 2024, with 17 ICBs selected in the first cohort, GIRFT teams have deployed their proven Further Faster model to work with ICB leaders to reduce MSK community waiting times, including for those with arthritis, and improve data, metrics, and referral pathways to wider support services. The Joint Work and Health team and GIRFT are continuing to develop the approach to better enable integrated care systems to commission the delivery of high quality MSK services in the community, which will benefit patients now and in the future.
The NHS Constitution sets out that patients should start consultant-led treatment within a maximum of 18 weeks from referral for non-urgent conditions. On 6 January 2025, NHS England published the new Elective Reform Plan, which sets out a whole system approach to hitting the 18-week referral to treatment target by the end of this Parliament. The Government has now exceeded its pledge to deliver two million extra operations, scans, and appointments, having delivered over three million more appointments as a first step to delivering on the commitment that 92% of patients will wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to consultant-led treatment, in line with the NHS constitutional standard, by March 2029.
To support health and care professionals in the early diagnosis and management of rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has published expert guidance for rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, with further information on both available, respectively, at the following two links:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng100
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng226
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
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 reduce waiting times for treatment for people with arthritis.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Services for those with musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions, including arthritis, are commissioned locally by integrated care boards (ICBs). The Department expects MSK services to be fully incorporated into integrated care system planning and decision-making.
As announced in the Get Britain Working white paper, we are delivering the joint Department for Work and Pensions, Department of Health and Social Care, and NHS England Getting It Right First-Time (GIRFT) MSK Community Delivery Programme. Launched in December 2024, with 17 ICBs selected in the first cohort, GIRFT teams have deployed their proven Further Faster model to work with ICB leaders to reduce MSK community waiting times, including for those with arthritis, and improve data, metrics, and referral pathways to wider support services. The Joint Work and Health team and GIRFT are continuing to develop the approach to better enable integrated care systems to commission the delivery of high quality MSK services in the community, which will benefit patients now and in the future.
The NHS Constitution sets out that patients should start consultant-led treatment within a maximum of 18 weeks from referral for non-urgent conditions. On 6 January 2025, NHS England published the new Elective Reform Plan, which sets out a whole system approach to hitting the 18-week referral to treatment target by the end of this Parliament. The Government has now exceeded its pledge to deliver two million extra operations, scans, and appointments, having delivered over three million more appointments as a first step to delivering on the commitment that 92% of patients will wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to consultant-led treatment, in line with the NHS constitutional standard, by March 2029.
To support health and care professionals in the early diagnosis and management of rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has published expert guidance for rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, with further information on both available, respectively, at the following two links:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng100
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng226
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
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 improve care for people living with arthritis.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Services for those with musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions, including arthritis, are commissioned locally by integrated care boards (ICBs). The Department expects MSK services to be fully incorporated into integrated care system planning and decision-making.
As announced in the Get Britain Working white paper, we are delivering the joint Department for Work and Pensions, Department of Health and Social Care, and NHS England Getting It Right First-Time (GIRFT) MSK Community Delivery Programme. Launched in December 2024, with 17 ICBs selected in the first cohort, GIRFT teams have deployed their proven Further Faster model to work with ICB leaders to reduce MSK community waiting times, including for those with arthritis, and improve data, metrics, and referral pathways to wider support services. The Joint Work and Health team and GIRFT are continuing to develop the approach to better enable integrated care systems to commission the delivery of high quality MSK services in the community, which will benefit patients now and in the future.
The NHS Constitution sets out that patients should start consultant-led treatment within a maximum of 18 weeks from referral for non-urgent conditions. On 6 January 2025, NHS England published the new Elective Reform Plan, which sets out a whole system approach to hitting the 18-week referral to treatment target by the end of this Parliament. The Government has now exceeded its pledge to deliver two million extra operations, scans, and appointments, having delivered over three million more appointments as a first step to delivering on the commitment that 92% of patients will wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to consultant-led treatment, in line with the NHS constitutional standard, by March 2029.
To support health and care professionals in the early diagnosis and management of rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has published expert guidance for rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, with further information on both available, respectively, at the following two links:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng100
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng226
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
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 support people living with arthritis to stay physically active.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Guidance published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on the diagnosis and management of osteoarthritis recommends therapeutic exercise for all people with osteoarthritis that is tailored to their needs and that is part of a wider structured treatment package. It advises that, for people with osteoarthritis, long-term adherence to an exercise plan can help to reduce pain and increase functioning and quality of life. Further information on this guidance is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng226
More widely, the Government and the National Health Service recognise the important role of physical activity in the prevention and management of long-term health conditions, including arthritis. The NHS Better Health Campaign promotes ways for adults, families, and children to move more, and signposts people, including those living with long term conditions who are ready to build movement into their routine, to digital support like the NHS Active 10 walking app.
Local authorities and the NHS also promote and provide services for people living with long- term conditions, such as exercise on referral and social prescribing, including access to physical activity interventions, fall prevention, and walking groups.
The Department, with Sport England, has delivered support and training to equip healthcare professionals to enable patients to move more to improve their physical and mental health. Sport England continues to support work in this area through the Physical Activity Clinical Champions programme, which is currently being piloted in local areas.
NHS England is working closely with partners nationally and locally to explore how the NHS might galvanise support to make physical activity a core part of NHS care in order to benefit patients, NHS staff, and the wider public.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
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 ensure the 10 Year Health Plan will benefit people with (a) arthritis and (b) other long-term conditions.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan will deliver the three big shifts our National Health Service needs to be fit for the future: from hospital to community; from analogue to digital; and from sickness to prevention. All of these are relevant to improving arthritis care and management of long-term conditions in all parts of the country.
More tests and scans delivered in the community, better joint working between services, and greater use of apps and wearable technology will all support people to manage their long-term conditions, including arthritis, closer to home.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for his policies of the humanitarian situation in Gaza, in the context of recent statements by the Israeli Government on the future governance of the territory; and what steps the Government is taking to support the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK strongly opposes the expansion of Israel's operations in Gaza. We consider that any attempt to annex land would be unacceptable. As I said to the house on 14 May, we are calling on the Government of Israel to lift its block on aid immediately, and to enable the UN and humanitarians to save lives. We have been clear that humanitarian aid must never be used as a political tool or military tactic, and that UK will not support any aid mechanism that seeks to deliver political or military objectives or puts vulnerable civilians at risk. Ministers have raised concerns about Israel's aid block with their Israeli counterparts, and on 13 May the UK, along with European partners, called an urgent session of the UN Security Council to address the humanitarian situation in Gaza.