Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
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 14 July 2025 to Question 64336 on Vamorolone, what the consequences are for (a) Integrated Care Boards and (b) NHS Trusts for not making NICE recommended medicines available within 90 days of publication of relevant guidance.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
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 the impact on carers is included in NICE technology appraisals for rare and progressive diseases.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
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 NICE appraisals for (a) Duchenne muscular dystrophy and (b) other rare, progressive conditions take into account urgency of access.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
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 27 January to Question 25553 on Methylphenidate Shortages, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the current supply of methylphenidate for ADHD.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which NHS Trusts will be involved in the Rapid National Investigation into maternity and neonatal services.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 14 August 2025, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced the appointment of Baroness Amos as Chair of the Independent Maternity and Neonatal Investigation, with further information available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/baroness-amos-to-spearhead-maternity-and-neonatal-investigation#
The investigation will carry out rapid reviews of up to ten trusts with specific issues. The Chair is working closely with families to finalise the terms of reference, including the selection criteria to select the trusts, which will be announced as soon as possible.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
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 ensuring that the national review of Maternity Services (a) includes representations from (i) patients and (ii) campaign groups and (b) encourages their active involvement.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 23 June, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care announced an independent investigation into National Health Service maternity and neonatal services to understand the systemic issues behind why so many women, babies, and families experience unacceptable care. He has held a series of meetings with harmed and bereaved families from across the country and has committed to ensuring that the voices of women and families are at the heart of improving standards.
In addition, on 14 August, the appointment was announced of the Rt Hon. the Baroness Amos as chair of the independent maternity and neonatal investigation. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/baroness-amos-to-spearhead-maternity-and-neonatal-investigation
The Rt. Hon. the Baroness Amos was selected after feedback from bereaved families who expressed a preference for someone with distance from the NHS. Support will be given by a team of esteemed expert advisors, who will be selected following further engagement with families. The chair is working with families to finalise the terms of reference for the investigation, and these will be published shortly.
The Government is also establishing a National Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce, chaired by my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, and this is to be made up of a panel of experts and family, charity, and staff representatives.
The taskforce will use the recommendations from the independent investigation to develop a national plan to drive improvements across maternity and neonatal care. The taskforce will work closely with families in developing the action plan, ensuring their voices are central to this work.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond to the letter of 10 July 2025 from the hon. Member for Henley and Thame on maternity services.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The letter has been passed to Baroness Amos as chair of the independent investigation into National Health Service maternity and neonatal care, and she will respond directly in due course.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
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 15 July to Question 66814 on Health Services: Oxfordshire, what steps he is taking to ensure that Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is able to recruit and retain midwives in the context of efficiency savings.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to ensuring the National Health Service can both recruit and retain staff. We recently announced the Graduate Guarantee for nurses and midwives, which will ensure that there are enough positions available for every newly qualified midwife in England, and includes £8 million to support the temporary conversion of vacant maternity support worker posts to band 5 registered midwifery roles.
Additionally, NHS England is undertaking targeted retention programme for midwives, led by the Chief Nursing Officer. This includes: a midwifery and nursing retention self-assessment tool; mentoring schemes; strengthened advice and support on pensions and flexible retirement options; and the publication of menopause policies and guidance. NHS England has also invested in unit-based leads in every trust who focus on retention and provide pastoral support to midwives. This initiative, alongside investment in workforce capacity, has seen a reduction in vacancy, leaver and turnover rates.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) births and (b) elective c-sections occurred in each NHS trust in England in 2024.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Health Service routinely publishes data on maternity activity for NHS hospitals, including data relating to the number of births, the method of onset of labour, delivery methods, and places of delivery. An annual publication for this data, covering the financial year ending March 2024, is available at the following link:
A monthly breakdown of statistics is also available, at the following link:
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of the inclusion of Oxford University Hospitals Trust in the rapid review of NHS maternity services.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The investigation will carry out rapid reviews of up to ten trusts with specific issues. The process of determining which trusts to review is ongoing, and once decided, they will be announced as soon as possible.