Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of people initially coded with (a) pre‑diabetes and (b) type 2 diabetes who were later found to have early or established type 1 diabetes in the most recent period for which data is available; and what steps his Department is taking with NHS England to help improve diagnostic accuracy in England.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Data is not collected centrally on the numbers or proportions of people initially coded with pre-diabetes or type 2 diabetes who were later found to have type 1 diabetes. The change of patient diagnosis would be reflected by a change of diagnosis code in clinical systems. However, the way that data extraction works for national audits means that it is not possible to track these types of changes.
Published data on diabetes registrations by GP practice can be found in the quarterly National Diabetes Audit (NDA) data release. This also contains data on care process and treatment target attainment as well as the number of new diagnoses by calendar year.
The latest quarterly report is available at the following link:
The NDA supports improvements in diagnosis by assessing whether people with diabetes are receiving the recommended diagnostic checks and to identify variations and shortfalls in care delivery against National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the role of mayoral authorities will be within Regional Health Innovation Zones.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Collaboration between health systems and local government, including mayoral authorities, is fundamental to the design and delivery of the Regional Health Innovation Zones, as set out in the 10-Year Health Plan and the Life Sciences Sector Plan. The Government is committed to ensuring that local government leaders feel a sense of shared ownership in these plans.
The policy is currently in development. It is being designed with flexibility at its core, to ensure it accommodates the diversity of local government structures across the country. The relevant policy teams are already beginning to engage with regional leaders, in health systems and local government, to codesign the approach and to provide more clarity to regions.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
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 Health Plan on the roles of mayoral authorities in delivering health and social care services.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, the Government is committed to making mayors, or their representatives, members of integrated care boards (ICBs), harnessing the opportunities of joined-up strategic planning between ICBs and strategic authorities, and supporting delivery of a “health in all policies” approach. Subject to the passage of the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill, mayors will be supported by a new health improvement and health inequalities duty, which empowers and supports strategic authorities to exercise their functions in ways that improve health and reduce health inequalities between people living in their area.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when NICE plans to review (a) guideline NG17 for Type 1 diabetes in adults and (b) guideline NG18 for Diabetes (type 1 and type 2) in children and young people; and what the timelines are for the next updates.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for translating evidence into authoritative evidence-based guidance for the health and care system on best practice, in order to drive improved outcomes for patients.
NICE currently has no plans to update guidelines NG17 and NG18. NICE takes a proactive approach to surveillance, monitoring for changes in the evidence base that may impact on its recommendations. Topics for new or updated guidance are considered through the NICE prioritisation process. Decisions as to whether NICE will create new, or update existing, guidance are overseen by an integrated, cross-organisational prioritisation board, chaired by NICE’s Chief Medical Officer.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what role mayoral authorities will play in the delivery of Neighbourhood Health Plans.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The wide range of local government responsibilities relevant to health and wellbeing, including social care, public health, and beyond, are central to our vision for Neighbourhood Health. Neighbourhood Health will move care out of hospitals and into communities, with more personalised, proactive, and integrated services starting from where and how people live their lives. This will involve building stronger links to wider local government services such as housing, family hubs, and programmes such as Pride in Place, as well as links with wider civil society including the voluntary, community, and social enterprise (VCSE) sector.
We are working closely with the Local Government Association to develop a national framework setting out how the National Health Service, local authorities, and partners should work together under the leadership of health and wellbeing boards to develop and implement local neighbourhood health plans.
NHS, local authority, and VCSE services will be co-located in neighbourhood health centres, bringing together a wide range of services to holistically meet the needs of local populations.
Neighbourhood teams and services should be designed to reflect the needs of people in their local areas, with licence to tailor the approach to local needs and with an expectation of crossing organisational boundaries.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps NHS England has taken to help identify (a) children and (b) adults at risk of pre‑symptomatic Type 1 diabetes; and what assessment has been made of (i) the uptake and (ii) effectiveness of those services.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Healthcare Research is funding the EarLy Surveillance for Autoimmune diabetes (ELSA) study into the feasibility of screening for type 1 diabetes in children aged three to 13 years old. The ELSA study has tested over 24,000 people and is being run through schools, general practice surgeries, as well as through online recruitment.
The UK National Screening Committee advises the National Health Service on screening programmes and, in 2019, concluded that more research and evidence for the benefits of screening for autoimmune type 1 diabetes was required.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
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 merits of opportunities to (a) enable earlier diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes and (b) reduce incidences of diabetic ketoacidosis; and what actions are being taken by (i) his Department and (ii) NHS England to support (A) research and (B) improved clinical practice in these areas.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The early diagnosis of type 1 diabetes is important to reducing incidences of diabetic ketoacidosis. NHS England is working with experts and relevant stakeholder organisations to monitor the outcomes of the current research on the early detection of type 1 diabetes. To support integrated care boards, NHS England has convened experts and stakeholder organisations to consider emerging evidence and articulate what a pathway of care could look like given advancements in this field.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
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 September 2025 to Question 74995 on Covid: Vaccination, for what reason (a) spousal household contacts aged under 75 years of immunosuppressed individuals and (b) other household contacts of immunosuppressed individuals are not eligible for the NHS covid-19 autumn booster programme during the autumn and winter of 2025/26.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to protecting those most vulnerable to COVID-19 through vaccination, as guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The primary aim of the national COVID-19 vaccination programme remains the prevention of severe illness, involving hospitalisation and/or death, arising from COVID-19.
The JCVI’s advice for autumn 2024 noted that in the era of high population immunity to COVID-19, and with all cases due to highly transmissible Omicron sub-variants, any protection offered by the vaccine against the transmission of infection from one person to another was expected to be extremely limited. On this basis, the JCVI did not advise offering vaccination to any household contacts. The Government accepted the JCVI’s advice for autumn 2024, with both the advice and the Government’s response available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-accepts-advice-on-2024-autumn-covid-vaccine-programme
Household contacts were therefore not offered vaccination in the autumn 2024 campaign. On 13 November 2024, the JCVI published advice on the COVID-19 vaccination programme covering vaccination in 2025 and spring 2026. In line with its advice for the autumn 2024 campaign, the JCVI did not advise COVID-19 vaccination for household contacts. This advice is available at the following link:
The Government accepted the JCVI’s advice on eligibility for the spring and autumn 2025 COVID-19 vaccination programme. The Government is considering the advice for spring 2026 carefully, and will respond in due course.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
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 that bereaved parents have equal access to specialist psychological support following (a) pregnancy and (b) baby loss.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Experiencing pregnancy or baby loss can be extremely difficult and traumatic. We are determined to make sure all bereaved parents, regardless of where they live, have access to specialist psychological support.
As of June 2025, Maternal Mental Health Services are now available in all areas of England. These services provide specialist psychological support for women with moderate/severe or complex mental health difficulties arising from birth trauma or baby loss.
All trusts in England are also signed up to the National Bereavement Care Pathway. This pathway is designed to improve the quality and consistency of bereavement care for parents and families experiencing pregnancy or baby loss.
We also recognise the importance of maternity bereavement services being available at all times. Seven day a week bereavement services are in the process of being set up in every area in England to support women and families who experience pregnancy loss or neonatal death.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
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 that NHS staff who are assaulted at work do not face (a) loss of pay, (b) punitive attendance management processes and (c) risk of dismissal while recovering from injuries sustained in the course of their duties.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS trusts are independent employers that have their own policies and procedures for managing staff sickness absence. Sickness absence policies and procedures should be fair, reasonable and comply with existing employment legislation.
For all NHS staff, including those on the Agenda for Change (AfC) contract and medical contracts, the NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook provides entitlement of up to 6 months full and six months half occupational sick pay when staff are too ill to work. The Handbook also states that when calculating an employee’s sick pay entitlement, absence caused by injuries attributable to NHS employment will be disregarded and should not count toward sickness absence totals.
Where NHS staff are off work due to a work-related injury or illness, they may be eligible for NHS injury allowance. Injury allowance tops up pay to 85% of an individual’s earnings for up to 12 months when on reduced pay or half pay.
To address variance in how NHS organisations manage sickness absence attendance, NHS England is currently working to develop a ‘Supporting Attendance’ Human Resources policy framework. Further information is available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/future-of-human-resources-and-organisational-development/nhs-people-policy-frameworks/