Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding his department allocated to the indemnity schemes in place for Covid-19 vaccinations.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are unable to provide full information as requested regarding the valuation of the COVID-19 vaccine indemnities due to their commercial sensitivity.
The existence of the COVID-19 vaccination indemnities is disclosed in the contingent liabilities note within the Department’s group annual report and accounts (ARA). The value of the contingent liabilities was not disclosed due to their sensitive nature. There is also a provision for a COVID-19 vaccination indemnity included in the ARA as part of ‘other’ in the provisions note.
The most recently published ARA is available at the following link:
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2025 to Question 34608 on Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme: Appeals, whether past tribunal decisions are used to support assessments.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (VDPS) appeal cases are overseen by His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service and processed through the First-tier Tribunal. Upon conclusion of an appeal, the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) receives a Statement of Reasons from the presiding judge. This document is reviewed by NHSBSA and used to inform and support continuous improvement initiatives within the organisation.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will consider reviewing the Allied Healthcare Professional status list to include chiropractors as part of the government’s wider review of the NHS.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards are able to make independent decisions on which health professionals they employ and may commission a limited amount of chiropractic treatment.
There are no plans by either the Department or NHS England to review the health and care professions that are classified as an allied health profession.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will (a) support further integration of chiropractic care into NHS services across Tatton and (b) give chiropractors Allied Healthcare Professional status.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards are able to make independent decisions on which health professionals they employ and may commission a limited amount of chiropractic treatment.
There are no plans by either the Department or NHS England to review the health and care professions that are classified as an allied health profession.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what litigation costs his Department incurred in Wilson and others v Bayer Pharma and others, [2023] EWHC 1282 (QB); and how many representatives of his Department attended the Royal Courts of Justice for that hearing.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
A total of £469,613.30 in legal costs, as of the end of May 2025, excluding VAT, has been incurred by the Department of Health and Social Care via the Government Legal Department representing them on the Wilson and others v Bayer Pharma and others case. Another matter, Forshaw, was litigated at the same time where the costs were included within the billing for Wilson, but it is not possible to split the costs on these cases because that data is not available in that format.
Four legal representatives on behalf of the Department and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) attended the hearing in May 2023 at the Royal Courts of Justice, namely a senior Government Legal Department lawyer accompanied by a legal executive, and two Counsel, a King's Counsel and a barrister. There were no attendees from the Department of Health and Social Care or the MHRA.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the FOI request 2024/00205, when the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency plans to publish (a) details of its investigation into the advertising activities of the company Zoe and (b) for what reason the conclusion of the investigation has been delayed.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) investigates allegations of non-compliance with medical device regulations. Where appropriate, they can use their enforcement powers to ensure action is taken against devices that pose a serious risk to public health. All investigations are handled in a timely manner.
Information about allegations of non-compliance, investigations, and outcomes are generally exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, therefore the MHRA does not routinely publish the outcomes of their investigations, including those within the Freedom of Information request referenced. However, where there are concerns about the safety of a medical device, the MHRA will warn the public, for example through National Patient Safety Alerts.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to page 94 of his Department's policy paper entitled Fit for the future: 10 year health plan for England, published in July 2025, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of transferring the hosting arrangement for the Patient Safety Commissioner to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency on the level of independence of that post.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Dr Dash’s review of patient safety across the health and care landscape was published in July 2025. The review sets out a broad aim to streamline, simplify, and consolidate functions across the patient safety landscape. Dr Dash made nine recommendations which the Government has accepted in full and fed into the 10-Year Health Plan.
The review specifically recommends that the patient safety commissioner is hosted by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency. The office of the patient safety commissioner remains accountable to the Department, as it is now.
The Patient Safety Commissioner will play an important role in holding the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency to account for its work on patient safety and in ensuring that patient safety and the voice of patients remains a core priority in the agency’s work.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish the report on packaging changes to Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, as discussed at the Commission on Human Medicines Antidepressant Risk Minimisation Expert Working Group on 1 May.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
A public assessment report will be published by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) after the completion of the review. The advice of the Commission on Human Medicines (CHM) will be sought after the next meeting of the Antidepressant Risk Minimisation Expert Working Group (EWG) in July 2025.
The public assessment report will contain the minutes of all EWG meetings and the CHM’s advice on any regulatory action required. It is anticipated that the public assessment report will be published by the MHRA in Autumn 2025.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many staff network events took place in his Department in May 2025; and what the names of those events were.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Staff networks are collaborative volunteer networks, organised by staff themselves rather than the Department.
The Department had a total of seven staff network events that took place in May 2025. This number represents events led by the networks and does not include any scheduled meetings that are normally restricted to their members. The names of the events are listed as follows:
- Mental Health Awareness week: lived experiences panel event (Women’s Network);
- Tom Riordan in Conversation with the Men’s Health Network (Men’s Health Network);
- Women’s healthcare: ‘Ask the historians’ session (History Network);
- Reflections from clinician and social worker network members on working as mental health professionals (Social Worker Network and Clinicians Network);
- ADHD at work: How it affects us and what helps us (ADHD Staff Network);
- Mental Health Awareness Week – Higher Executive Officer-Senior Executive Officer Network Event (Higher Executive Officer-Senior Executive Officer Network); and
- From Higher Executive Officer to Senior Executive Officer: How to progress across grades (Higher Executive Officer-Senior Executive Officer Network).
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
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 merits of new antimicrobial therapeutics developed by SMEs.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The United Kingdom’s 2024 to 2029 national action plan (NAP) to confront antimicrobial resistance (AMR) includes a commitment to work across sectors to develop new antimicrobials. The NAP also acknowledges the potential of alternative therapies, such as bacteriophage, also known as phage, therapy, in combating AMR.
NHS England launched the UK-wide subscription model for antimicrobial products in August 2024, which incentivises the development of new antibiotics through de-linking payments for products from the volumes used. This aims to provide sufficient sale revenues to make it commercially viable for a company, including small and medium sized enterprises, to bring new products to market. Furthermore, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency is committed to working with organisations to support innovation in antimicrobial therapeutics.