Asked by: Ben Spencer (Conservative - Runnymede and Weybridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to paragraph 2.40 of the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October 2024, whether he has made an estimate of the number of dental practices that will close as a result of the proposed increase in the rate of employer National Insurance contributions.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have taken necessary decisions to fix the foundations in the public finances at Autumn Budget 2024, which enabled the Spending Review settlement of a £22.6 billion increase in resource spending for the Department from 2023/24 outturn to 2025/26.
The employer National Insurance rise will be implemented in April 2025, and the Department will set out further details on the allocation of funding for next year in due course.
Asked by: Ben Spencer (Conservative - Runnymede and Weybridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of the proposed increase in the rate of employer National Insurance contributions on (a) trends in the level of recruitment and (b) the provision of care in dentistry.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have taken necessary decisions to fix the foundations in the public finances at Autumn Budget 2024, which enabled the Spending Review settlement of a £22.6 billion increase in resource spending for the Department from 2023/24 outturn to 2025/26.
The employer National Insurance rise will be implemented in April 2025, and the Department will set out further details on the allocation of funding for next year in due course.
Asked by: Ben Spencer (Conservative - Runnymede and Weybridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had recent discussions with the National Institute for Health and Care Research on support for research into the (a) care and (b) treatment for people with brain tumours.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Research is crucial in tackling cancer. The Department spends £1.5 billion each year on research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), with cancer being the largest area of spend, at over £121.8 million in 2022/23. The NIHR spends more on cancer than any other disease group, reflecting its high priority.
In September 2024 we announced new research funding opportunities for brain cancer research, spanning both adult and paediatric populations. This includes a national NIHR Brain Tumour Research Consortium, to ensure the most promising research opportunities are made available to adult and child patients, and a new funding call to generate high quality evidence in brain tumour care, support, and rehabilitation. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.nihr.ac.uk/news/new-funding-opportunities-novel-brain-tumour-research-launched
In the five years between 2018/19 and 2022/23, the NIHR spent over £11.3 million on research projects focussed on brain tumours. In addition, our wider investments in NIHR research infrastructure, including facilities, services, and the research workforce, further allows us to leverage research funding from other donors and organisations. These investments are estimated to be £31.5 million between 2018/19 and 2022/23, and have enabled 227 brain cancer research studies to take place in the same period.
Brain tumour research will continue to be a priority into the future, and the Department, through the NIHR, will continue to fund high-quality science to expand lifesaving and life-improving research.
Asked by: Ben Spencer (Conservative - Runnymede and Weybridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to paragraph 2.40 of the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October, what discussions he has had with health and care charities on the potential impact of increased National Insurance contributions on their ability to (a) support and (b) provide NHS care.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No discussions have taken place with health and care charities on the potential impact of increased National Insurance contributions on their ability to support and provide National Health Service care.
To repair the public finances and help raise the revenue required to increase funding for public services, the Government has taken the difficult decision to increase employer National Insurance. On the impact on charities in particular, our tax regime for charities, including exemption from paying business rates, is among the most generous of anywhere in the world, with tax reliefs for charities and their donors worth just over £6 billion for the tax year to April 2024.
Asked by: Ben Spencer (Conservative - Runnymede and Weybridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had discussions with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on the potential merits of reviewing guidance for the (a) diagnosis, (b) care and (c) treatment of brain tumours.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Officials in the Department regularly discuss a range of issues with colleagues in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), including proposals to review or update existing guidelines. NICE keeps its published guidelines under surveillance and decisions on whether they should be updated in light of new evidence taken independently by NICE’s prioritisation board. NICE currently has no plans to update its guideline on “brain tumours (primary) and brain metastases in over 16s”.
We are aware of Siobhain McDonagh's campaign, in memory of the late Baroness McDonagh, and are committed to working together to explore options.
Asked by: Ben Spencer (Conservative - Runnymede and Weybridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what professional accreditations will new mental health practitioners employed in schools be required to hold.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are currently working with colleagues at the Department for Education and NHS England to consider the options.
Asked by: Ben Spencer (Conservative - Runnymede and Weybridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what meetings he has had with (a) NHS clinical teams specialising in the care and treatment of brain tumours, (b) researchers, (c) patients and (d) patient group representatives on brain tumours.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Ministers regularly meet with a wide range of cancer partners, including brain cancer charities and patient groups. Ministers also regularly meet with teams from the National Health Service, including clinical specialists where this is appropriate. These meetings are valuable opportunities to discuss raising awareness, screening, treatments, innovation, and the care experiences of people living with cancer.
The Department, NHS England, and the National Institute for Health Care and Research (NIHR) are taking several steps to help improve outcomes for brain tumour patients. NHS England is committed to ensuring that all cancer patients are offered Holistic Needs Assessment and Personalised Care and Support Planning, ensuring care is focused on what matters most to each person. As well as this, all patients, including those with secondary cancers, will have access to the right expertise and support, including a Clinical Nurse Specialist or other support worker.
Further to this, in September 2024, the NIHR announced new research funding opportunities for brain cancer research, spanning both adult and paediatric populations. This includes a national NIHR Brain Tumour Research Consortium, to ensure the most promising research opportunities are made available to adult and child patients, and a new funding call to generate high quality evidence in brain tumour care, support, and rehabilitation. We will get the NHS diagnosing cancer, including brain tumours, on time, diagnosing it earlier, and treating it faster, so more patients survive this horrible set of diseases, and we will improve patients’ experience across the system.
Asked by: Ben Spencer (Conservative - Runnymede and Weybridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to publish a brain tumour strategy.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Ministers regularly meet with a wide range of cancer partners, including brain cancer charities and patient groups. Ministers also regularly meet with teams from the National Health Service, including clinical specialists where this is appropriate. These meetings are valuable opportunities to discuss raising awareness, screening, treatments, innovation, and the care experiences of people living with cancer.
The Department, NHS England, and the National Institute for Health Care and Research (NIHR) are taking several steps to help improve outcomes for brain tumour patients. NHS England is committed to ensuring that all cancer patients are offered Holistic Needs Assessment and Personalised Care and Support Planning, ensuring care is focused on what matters most to each person. As well as this, all patients, including those with secondary cancers, will have access to the right expertise and support, including a Clinical Nurse Specialist or other support worker.
Further to this, in September 2024, the NIHR announced new research funding opportunities for brain cancer research, spanning both adult and paediatric populations. This includes a national NIHR Brain Tumour Research Consortium, to ensure the most promising research opportunities are made available to adult and child patients, and a new funding call to generate high quality evidence in brain tumour care, support, and rehabilitation. We will get the NHS diagnosing cancer, including brain tumours, on time, diagnosing it earlier, and treating it faster, so more patients survive this horrible set of diseases, and we will improve patients’ experience across the system.
Asked by: Ben Spencer (Conservative - Runnymede and Weybridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken to ensure the change.nhs.uk consultation is accessible to (a) people living with disabilities and (b) people without access to the internet.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Change NHS engagement exercise will give the public, staff, and partners the opportunity to share their views and help develop the 10-Year Health Plan. This will be done through our recently launched online platform, change.NHS.UK, and through online and in-person events.
The online platform provides a variety of formats and ways to respond, to meet the range of accessibility needs. British Sign Language and easy-read formats of the Change NHS surveys are available on the online platform as of 1 November. We are also working to ensure that the online platform is accessible for people using assistive technology. This in line with public sector accessibility requirements that we set out in the contract with the external supplier responsible for the platform.
There is an option to respond via post with a printed copy of the survey content, for those who cannot respond online. Anyone having any difficultly responding can get in touch using the contact details available on the website to request assistance or an alternative way to respond.
Asked by: Ben Spencer (Conservative - Runnymede and Weybridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has issued guidance to integrated care systems (ICS) on commissioning specialist care and treatment services for myalgic encephalomyelitis or chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS); and whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of requiring ICSs to commission minimum levels of those services.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has made a commitment to publish a final delivery plan for ME/CFS. The consultation responses, alongside continued stakeholder engagement, will inform the development of the final delivery plan, which we aim to publish in the winter of 2024/25. The plan will focus on boosting research, improving attitudes and education, and bettering the lives of people with this debilitating disease.
In 2021, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published guidance on the management and diagnosis of ME/CFS. The NICE’s guideline provides recommendations on principles of care for people with severe ME/CFS, including hospital care, and adapting a multidisciplinary approach with access to a range of health and social care professionals based on needs. Although NICE guidance is not mandatory, the Government does expect healthcare commissioners to take the guidelines fully into account in designing services to meet the needs of their local population, and to work towards their implementation over time.
My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has not yet had any meetings with National Health Service clinical teams specialising in myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), ME/CFS researchers, patients, or patient group representatives.