Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the average annual cost incurred by patients privately prescribed cannabis-based products for medicinal use; and how that cost compares with the maximum annual charge payable by an NHS patient holding a Prescription Prepayment Certificate.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and adult social care services in England, including private clinics that prescribe cannabis-based products for medicinal use (CBPMs). Private providers must be registered with the CQC and are inspected against standards relating to safety, quality, and safeguarding. To ensure the legislative framework remains safe and fit for purpose, my Rt. Hon Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department has commissioned the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs to undertake a comprehensive review of the 2018 changes to the Misuse of Drugs Regulations that enabled access to CBPMs.
Data on National Health Service prescriptions for unlicensed cannabis-based products for medicinal use are withheld because the number of patients receiving these products is fewer than five nationally, creating a risk of patient identification under United Kingdom data protection legislation.
The Government recognises that some patients face significant costs when accessing unlicensed cannabis-based products for medicinal use privately. However, the cost of treatments obtained through private prescribing arrangements is a matter between patients and providers.
The Department has not made an assessment of the average annual cost incurred by patients who obtain CBPMs through private prescriptions, nor has it made a comparison between those costs and the cost of an NHS Prescription Prepayment Certificate.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many prescriptions for unlicensed cannabis-based products for medicinal use have been funded by the NHS in England in each year since November 2018.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and adult social care services in England, including private clinics that prescribe cannabis-based products for medicinal use (CBPMs). Private providers must be registered with the CQC and are inspected against standards relating to safety, quality, and safeguarding. To ensure the legislative framework remains safe and fit for purpose, my Rt. Hon Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department has commissioned the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs to undertake a comprehensive review of the 2018 changes to the Misuse of Drugs Regulations that enabled access to CBPMs.
Data on National Health Service prescriptions for unlicensed cannabis-based products for medicinal use are withheld because the number of patients receiving these products is fewer than five nationally, creating a risk of patient identification under United Kingdom data protection legislation.
The Government recognises that some patients face significant costs when accessing unlicensed cannabis-based products for medicinal use privately. However, the cost of treatments obtained through private prescribing arrangements is a matter between patients and providers.
The Department has not made an assessment of the average annual cost incurred by patients who obtain CBPMs through private prescriptions, nor has it made a comparison between those costs and the cost of an NHS Prescription Prepayment Certificate.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing statutory oversight of chronic pain management training for healthcare professionals.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided to the Hon Member for Stockton West on 15 July 2026 in response to Question 16094.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of diagnostic thresholds for Vitamin B12 deficiency; and what steps she is taking to reduce regional variation in access to treatment for patients with the condition.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon Member to the answers provided to the Hon Member for Hazel Grove on 22 and 25 April 2025 to Questions 44659 and 44657.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department will develop a national strategy for the diagnosis and treatment of Vitamin B12 deficiency.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon Member to the answers provided to the Hon Member for Hazel Grove on 22 and 25 April 2025 to Questions 44659 and 44657.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
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 support small business owners with their mental health.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that running a small business can be challenging and can bring pressures that affect an owner’s mental health and wellbeing.
Information and support for company directors is available through the Government's Director information hub, which includes resources on mental health and wellbeing. In addition, the Small Business Commissioner has published guidance to help small businesses manage the mental health impacts of late payments. The Government's Director information hub and the guidance published by the Small Business Commissioner is available at the following two links:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/director-information-hub-mental-health-and-wellbeing
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
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 support those with coeliac disease with rising costs of gluten-free products.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
The Government recognises the financial burden that a strict gluten‑free diet can place on people with coeliac disease.
NHS England’s guidance on prescribing gluten-free foods sets out a national framework for primary care, and integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning arrangements in their areas and for supporting general practices to prescribe in line with that framework, taking account of local population needs.
The national position in England remains that gluten-free bread and mixes can be prescribed on the National Health Service for eligible people diagnosed with coeliac disease. However, ICBs can restrict or end the prescribing of gluten-free food.
Gluten-free foods have become more accessible in some supermarkets and online. However, food prices are determined by commercial suppliers and depend on a range of factors including import prices, domestic agricultural prices, domestic labour and manufacturing costs, and exchange rates. It is not for the Government to set retail food prices or to comment on day-to-day commercial decisions taken by businesses.
More broadly, the Government is taking action to support households with the cost of living, and we will continue to work with the NHS and stakeholders to ensure people with coeliac disease receive appropriate support and advice to manage their condition effectively.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, a) what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the needs of women are reflected in national and local HIV strategies, policies and decision-making structures, b) what action his Department is taking to address evidence and data gaps relating to HIV in women, including disparities in access to HIV prevention, testing and diagnosis, and c) what measures his Department is taking to increase awareness and understanding of HIV among women.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
The HIV Action Plan for England, 2025 to 2030, sets out five core priorities needed to reach our ambition to end new HIV transmissions within England by 2030. One of these priorities is to address stigma and improve the quality of life for people living with HIV, including a national action to ensure the needs of women living with HIV are considered and addressed in future work. The plan also includes an action for local partners to embed HIV awareness into wider women’s health strategies.
Furthermore, the Department is committed to increasing the awareness and understanding of HIV. We are investing £4.8 million from 2026 to 2029 in the newly procured National HIV Prevention England Programme. This programme aims to increase awareness and understanding of HIV and reduce levels of HIV related stigma, particularly for communities disproportionately affected by HIV, such as Black African heterosexual women.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) will continue to publish HIV surveillance data, new HIV diagnoses, prevention, and outcome indicators, for all populations, including for women. The UKHSA has also committed to work with the voluntary and community sector to publish a specific report on HIV in women that will focus on key trends in HIV diagnoses in women, and highlight any disparities for women in relation to access to testing, pre-exposure prophylaxis, and treatment and care.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his department tracks current levels of NHS app usage across different patient groups.
Answered by Preet Kaur Gill
We track current levels of NHS App usage through the NHS App Management Information monthly publication. This is broken down by integrated care board and region, rather than demographic or patient group.
Future work will explore how to get more detailed data from the NHS App and use it to support decision-making.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps the Government is taking to support research and funding for treatments for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis.
Answered by Preet Kaur Gill
The Government is committed to funding high-quality research to understand the causes, consequences, and treatment of myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and the Medical Research Council (MRC), which is part of UK Research and Innovation, are working together to address the actions for research outlined in the ME/CFS Final Delivery Plan. Two projects have recently received funding to investigate the feasibility of a new clinical trial that tests multiple interventions for the treatment of post-acute infection syndromes, including Long Covid and ME/CFS. In addition, £4.75 million of Government funding has been provided to SequenceME, which will create the first high-resolution genetic map of the condition, paving the way to future diagnostics and treatments. To support research capacity building, the MRC has provided £845,000 to researchers at the University of Edinburgh towards PRIME, a new partnership award that aims to build infrastructure to enable ME/CFS biomedical research, and support is available to researchers to develop competitive funding applications from the NIHR’s Research Support Service.