Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
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 potential impact of the Neighbourhood Health Service on dental services in rural constituencies.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 3 July 2025, the Government announced the 10-Year Health Plan and set out its vision for a Neighbourhood Health Service set up in local communities across the country, to improve access to National Health Services, including NHS dental services.
We expect neighbourhood teams and services to be designed in a way that reflects the specific needs of local populations. We will be clear on the outcomes we expect, and will give significant licence to tailor the approach to local need.
Our priority will be to address underperformance and health inequalities in the areas with the worst health outcomes, such as rural and coastal communities, where we know access to healthcare services is often particularly poor.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
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 support adult social care in rural areas.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises the challenges facing adult social care and is taking action to improve the system across the country, including in rural areas. We have launched an independent commission into adult social care as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a National Care Service, and are also taking forward a package of reforms to enable more people to live independently for longer.
We are also updating the Adult Social Care Relative Needs Formula for the first time since 2013/14 to ensure adult social care funding reflects an up-to-date assessment of need. Our proposals are set out in the Fair Funding Review 2.0 consultation document, a consultation on local government funding reform which sets out our plans for ensuring central Government funding is allocated to the places that need it most, ensuring the best value for money for the Government and taxpayers. This wider consultation includes proposals to more effectively account for variations in the relative cost and demand of delivering services between rural and urban areas. We are proposing to do this by considering the remoteness of an area alongside its accessibility in the Area Cost Adjustment.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
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 potential impact of the 10 year plan on older residents in rural areas.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan will ensure a better health service for everyone, regardless of condition or geography. The 10-Year Health Plan has been built on what we heard during engagement with the public. Our reimagined National Health Service will be designed to tackle inequalities in both access and health outcomes, and will ensure a better health service for everyone, regardless of age or geography.
The neighbourhood health service will reflect the specific needs of local populations, including the needs of older residents in rural communities. Neighbourhood health centres will be available in every community, providing easy access to NHS, local authority, and voluntary sector services. New technology-led services, including wearable and monitoring technology, will support patients such as older people with frailty to enable them to continue living independently in their own home.
Equality has been considered throughout, and we expect to publish an Equality Impact Assessment later this month.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
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 potential impact of the Neighbourhood Health Service on healthcare in rural constituencies.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Neighbourhood Health Service will mean millions of patients, including those in rural constituencies, are treated and cared for closer to their home by new teams of health professionals. Our priority will be to address underperformance and health inequalities in the areas with the worst health outcomes, such as rural and coastal communities, where we know access to healthcare services is often particularly poor.
We expect neighbourhood teams and services to be designed in a way that reflects the specific needs of local populations. While we will be clear on the outcomes we expect, we will give significant licence to tailor the approach to local need.
Our 10-Year Health Plan is creating a National Health Service truly fit for the future, keeping patients healthy and out of hospital, with care closer to home and in the home. An impact statement for the plan will be published in shortly.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
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 potential impact of the 10-year plan on waiting lists in the North East.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are committed to delivering the National Health Service constitutional standard that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to consultant-led treatment by March 2029, including in the North East and Yorkshire.
The 10-Year Health Plan sets out a transformed vision for planned care by 2035, where most interactions no longer take place in a hospital building, instead happening virtually, online, or via neighbourhood services. Planned care will be more efficient, timely, and effective, and will put control in the hands of patients.
By 2035, two thirds of outpatient care will take place digitally or in the community closer to home, with patients able to access the best of their local hospital in a much more responsive way via their phones. For patients who do need to be admitted, we will carry out more procedures as day cases and will reduce the time spent in hospital and recovery, as providers make greater use of surgical robots and innovations in anaesthetics and postoperative care.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
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 ensure the NHS is prepared for future demographic changes.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan sets out our plan to get the National Health Service back on track and make it fit for the future through delivering three big shifts in how the NHS works. By moving more care from hospital to community, shifting from analogue to digital, and reaching patients earlier by shifting from sickness to prevention, the NHS will be better enabled to meet future demographic changes.
Integrated care boards are expected to have a deep understanding of their population’s needs and will engage with the public to develop long-term plans that meet these needs.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many additional GPs have been hired in North Northumberland constituency through Government funding.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
As of 31 May 2025, 58 general practitioners (GPs) have been recruited through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme in the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board (ICB) since 1 October 2024, the ICB in which the North Northumberland constituency is located. Data is not available at a constituency level.
Earlier in the year we announced that we are investing an additional £889 million through the GP Contract for 2025/26 to reinforce the front door of the National Health Service, bringing total spend on the GP Contract to £13.2 billion. This is the biggest increase in over a decade.
Every year we consult with the British Medical Association’s General Practice Committee both about what services practices provide, and the money they are entitled to in return under their contract, taking account the costs of delivering services. Practices are required to provide services to meet the reasonable needs of the patients registered at their practice. This includes making their own workforce plans.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
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 (a) to ensure the provision of Pfizer vaccines to people who cannot take Moderna and (b) with ICBs which have insufficient supplies of the Pfizer vaccine in North Northumberland constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) procures vaccines that have been approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and are advised for use in COVID-19 booster programmes by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The make-up of vaccine availability can vary from campaign to campaign based on the latest JCVI and clinical advice and procured stock available.
Published advice in the COVID-19 Green book, chapter 14a recommends that those with known contraindications to COVID-19 vaccination should seek advice from a relevant specialist. This may include an allergy specialist, who can make a clinical assessment of the individual's risks and benefits of vaccination. If suitable, these individuals may be advised to be vaccinated in hospital under medical supervision.
During the 2025 Spring COVID-19 vaccination campaign, UKHSA did not receive any reports of supply issues in North Northumberland.
Vaccine deployment is managed by NHS England which works with the regional teams and integrated care boards to ensure the vaccine is readily available for those eligible, as per the JCVI advice. UKHSA has worked and continues to work with all deployment partners to ensure the supply and provision of vaccines.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
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 ensure the availability of stroke-related medicines in Northumberland; and what steps he is taking to ensure the equal provision of medicines across England.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are aware of a supply issue affecting aspirin 300 milligram suppositories until late June 2025, which are used outside of their license of pain and inflammation, for their antiplatelet effect after a stroke. We have issued shortage management guidance to the National Health Service advising on the alternative, aspirin 150 milligram suppositories, which remain available for affected patients.
The Department monitors and manages medicine supply at a national level so that stocks remain available to meet regional and local demand. Information on stock levels within Northumberland is not held centrally.
Medicine supply chains are complex, global, and highly regulated, and there are a number of reasons why supply can be disrupted, many of which are not specific to the United Kingdom and outside of Government control, including manufacturing difficulties, access to raw materials, sudden demand spikes or distribution issues, and regulatory issues. We have drawn on up-to-date intelligence and data on the root causes of medicine supply issues, with manufacturing problems being the most dominant root cause. The Department works closely with industry, the NHS, manufacturers, and other partners across the supply chain to make sure patients across the UK can access the medicines they need.
The resilience of UK supply chains is a key priority, and we are continually learning and seeking to improve the way we work to both manage and help prevent supply issues and avoid shortages. The Department, working closely with NHS England, is taking forward a range of actions to improve our ability to mitigate and manage shortages and to strengthen our resilience. As part of that work, we continue to engage with industry, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, and other colleagues across the supply chain as we progress work to co-design and deliver solutions. We have plans underway to increase the awareness of our work.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the provision of emergency healthcare in (a) rural and (b) urban areas in the North East.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care board are responsible for commissioning services to meet the needs of their local communities, including in the North East, as they are best placed to take those decisions.
However, more broadly, the Government recognises that urgent and emergency care performance is not at the high standard that patients should expect. We are committed to returning to the safe operational waiting time standards set out in the NHS Constitution.
We have set out plans on the action to be taken to improve services this year and will shortly publish a 10-Year Health Plan, which will set out the radical reforms needed to make the National Health Service fit for the future.