Asked by: Alison Griffiths (Conservative - Bognor Regis and Littlehampton)
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 reduce the correlation between deprivation and lung 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 respiratory health in all parts of the country.
More tests and scans delivered in the community will allow for earlier diagnosis, better joint working between services, and greater use of apps and wearable technology will all help people manage their long-term conditions, including respiratory conditions, closer to home. Earlier diagnosis of conditions will help prevent deterioration and improve survival rates. Taking action to reduce the causes of the biggest killers, such as enabling a smoke free generation, can further help prevent lung conditions.
It is the most disadvantaged who suffer the most from the financial and health burden of smoking, with 230,000 households living in smoking induced poverty, and with smoking being the number one cause of preventable death, disability, and ill health, claiming the lives of approximately 80,000 people a year in the United Kingdom, as well as being the leading cause of lung cancer. The landmark Tobacco and Vapes Bill will create the first smoke-free generation, ending the cycle of addiction and disadvantage, and putting us on track to a smoke-free UK.
The NHS England Core20PLUS5 approach strives to inform action that targets the most deprived 20% of the population and other inclusion health groups, with the aim of reducing health inequalities.
The approach focuses on improving the five clinical areas at most need of accelerated improvement, those being cardiovascular disease, cancer, respiratory, maternity, and mental health outcomes, in the poorest 20% of the population, along with other disadvantaged population groups identified at a local level.
The Department is also working across Government on ways to reduce the health harms of air pollution, including with the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to support their plans for cleaner air, so that everyone’s exposure to air pollution is reduced.
Asked by: Alison Griffiths (Conservative - Bognor Regis and Littlehampton)
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 sustainable funding for community pharmacies to (a) support people with lung conditions and (b) reduce hospital admissions.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have concluded the most recent consultation on funding for 2024/25 and 2025/26 with the community pharmacy sector. This deal represents a funding increase of over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26 and will support community pharmacies in continuing to provide clinical services.
This includes the New Medicine Service, which focuses on treatments for long-term conditions, including asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Pharmacists provide advice on side effects and address issues or questions that patients who are prescribed a new medicine may have. In addition, patients moved from secondary to primary care continue to be supported by the Discharge Medicines Service providing advice on medication changes. Interventions of this type seek to improve medication adherence and patient outcomes as well as to reduce pressure on the wider National Health Service. Community pharmacies are further funded to support patients with asthma through the Pharmacy Quality Scheme, providing additional support to patients aged between five and 15 years old using a spacer and patients using short-acting bronchodilators.
Asked by: Alison Griffiths (Conservative - Bognor Regis and Littlehampton)
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 reduce lung disease mortality rate.
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 respiratory health in all parts of the country.
More tests and scans delivered in the community will allow earlier diagnosis, better joint working between services, and greater use of apps and wearable technology will all help people manage their long-term conditions, including respiratory conditions, closer to home. Earlier diagnosis of conditions will help prevent deterioration and improve survival rates. Taking action to reduce the causes of the biggest killers, such as enabling a smoke free generation, can further help prevent lung conditions.
Asked by: Alison Griffiths (Conservative - Bognor Regis and Littlehampton)
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 reduce delays in the provision of children’s mental health care services for young people experiencing acute mental health crises under mental health holds in adult psychiatric facilities.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Wherever possible, when children and young people need to be admitted to an inpatient setting for mental health treatment, they should be accommodated in an environment that is suitable for their age.
Sometimes, clinically urgent situations may necessitate children and young people being placed on wards that are not specialised for their care or are away from their home and family. In these situations, patient safety, the least restrictive environment, and clinical need remains paramount.
It is a statutory requirement for the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to be notified when a child or young person is placed on an adult ward for a continuous period of longer than 48 hours, with providers required to provide regular updates and give assurance that the children concerned are being safeguarded. The latest information from the CQC’s Monitoring the Mental Health Act: 2023 to 2024 report shows that there were 120 notifications of instances where a person under 18 years old was admitted to an adult ward in 2023/24, a 38% decrease compared with 2022/23.
The model of provision of National Health Service-funded inpatient treatment for children and young people is being re-designed to support the move to community-based provision, where children and young people are able to access appropriate support in a timely, effective, and patient-centred way, close to home, and in the least restrictive environment.
This transition is being supported through provider collaboratives, place-based commissioning, and the development of local services that meet the needs of local communities. The new model will see a change to how inpatient environments are best utilised and options may include increased day provision.
We are also working to improve community mental health services so that fewer children and young people need to be admitted for inpatient care. We will recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers across child and adult mental health services in England to cut wait times and provide faster treatment, provide access to a specialist mental health professional in every school in England, and roll out Young Futures Hubs to provide open access mental health support for children and young people.
Asked by: Alison Griffiths (Conservative - Bognor Regis and Littlehampton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, on what dates (a) he and (b) Ministers in his Department have met with their United States counterparts since 5 November 2024.
Answered by Douglas Alexander - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The Department for Business and Trade holds regular engagement with US counterparts at both Ministerial and official level.
Asked by: Alison Griffiths (Conservative - Bognor Regis and Littlehampton)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent representations she has received from legal professional bodies on the performance of employment tribunals.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Ministers and officials have regular meetings with legal professional bodies to discuss a range of matters about the justice system.
To address the demands the Employment Tribunals are facing, their capacity is being increased. Following recruitment, in 2024 we had 21 more salaried judges in the Employment Tribunals than in 2023, and further recruitment for up to 36 salaried Employment Judges commenced in March 2025. 50 fee paid employment judges were appointed in 2024 and recruitment will commence for another 50 in early 2026.
HM Courts & Tribunals Service continues to invest in improving tribunal productivity through the recruitment of additional judges, deployment of Legal Officers to actively manage cases, the development of modern case management systems, and the use of remote hearing technology. A ‘Virtual Region’ of judges has delivered over 1,500 extra sitting days.
As a result, the Lord Chancellor was able to announce on 5 March a sitting day allocation for the Employment Tribunals of 33,900 in 2025/26, the maximum allocation they are able to sit.
We do recognise that there remain significant challenges for the performance of the Employment Tribunals. We are therefore continuing to monitor demand on Employment Tribunals and are working with the judiciary, HMCTS and the Department for Business and Trade on any further actions needed to alleviate pressures on the Employment Tribunals, improve efficiency and reduce waiting times to ensure timely access to justice for claimants and respondents.