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 he has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a weekly cap on domiciliary care costs.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We announced on 3 January 2025 that we are launching an independent commission into adult social care as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a National Care Service.
Chaired by Baroness Louise Casey and reporting to the Prime Minister, the Commission will work with people who draw on care and their families, staff, politicians, and the public, private and third sector to make clear recommendations for how to rebuild the adult social care system to meet the current and future needs of the population.
The Commission will be comprehensive and will build on the expert proposals of other reviews, including that of Sir Andrew Dilnot into care funding and support. It will be broader and wider than ever before, asking essential questions about the shape and future of the social care sector, including what long-term and sustainable funding solutions should look like.
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 he plans to review the use of NHS Shared Business Services for finance services such as (a) payroll, (b) pensions, (c) procurement and (d) taxation.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS Shared Business Services provides these services though contract framework agreements which it hosts. In late 2023, NHS England launched an Accredited Framework Host programme and successfully accredited 20 Procurement Framework Host organisations, of which NHS Shared Business Services is one, all of whom have subscribed to enhanced standards. These standards cover a range of areas, from minimum contractual terms & conditions, robust supplier appointment and value for money assessment processes, through to sharing of commercial and commission data with NHS England.
Further details and the list of accredited host organisations such as NHS Shared Business Services are available at the following link:
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 healthcare providers to ensure (a) uninterrupted access to essential patient care and (b) maintain the stability of primary care services.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is vital that patients can access primary care services when they need it.
In October 2024, we provided an £82 million boost to the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme, enabling the recruitment of 1,000 newly qualified general practitioners (GPs) across England. This will take pressure off the existing workforce, secure the future supply of GPs and increase the number of appointments delivered in general practice. We have uplifted a monthly payment to practices by 7.4% to fund a 6% increase in pay to the general practice workforce. We have also announced a proposed £889 million uplift to the GP contract for 2025/26, the largest uplift in years, with a rising share of total National Health Service resources going to general practice. We are currently consulting the profession on key proposals to improve access, continuity of care and GP recruitment.
We are working to ensure patients can start to access 700,000 additional urgent NHS dental appointments as soon as possible, targeting areas that need them most. To rebuild NHS dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
We are committed to stabilising the pharmacy sector and building a service fit for the future, making full use of the skills of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. That includes making prescribing part of the services delivered by community pharmacists as we shift care from hospital to the community.
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 increase the number of (a) supervisor and (b) designated prescribing practitioners.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England is investing in training for independent prescribers, as well as initiatives to support the development and safe practice of designated prescribing practitioners (DPPs) and educational supervisors. This will ensure the National Health Service is ready to support and mentor foundation trainee pharmacists from 2025, alongside training for currently registered pharmacists that are learning to be independent prescribers.
Reforms to pharmacist education and training will allow for development of prescriber pharmacists from the point of registration from 2026. This will enable a career-long focus on prescriber services and an associated expansion of the DPP workforce, to support multi-professional teams and the expansion of cross-sector prescribing services.
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, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing non-academic routes for people to train as nurses.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have a complete apprentice pathway for nursing, from entry level to postgraduate advanced clinical practice. NHS England is expanding routes into healthcare professions through apprenticeships.
Our 10-Year Health Plan to reform the National Health Service will establish how to train and provide the staff the NHS needs, including nurses, through all training routes, to care for patients across our communities. A refreshed NHS Long Term Workforce Plan due for publication in summer 2025 will deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade, ensuring the NHS has the right people, in the right places, with the right skills to give the care patients need when they need it.
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 people have been fined for accessing prescriptions without a valid Maternity Exception Certificate.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are no plans to revise the application process for maternity exemption certificates that provide entitlement to free National Health Service prescriptions. The NHS Business Services Authority has advised that in 2024, 48,063 Penalty Charge Notices were issued to those who indicated they held a valid maternity exemption certificate that could not be validated.
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, if he will simplify the process for obtaining Maternity Exception Certificates.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are no plans to revise the application process for maternity exemption certificates that provide entitlement to free National Health Service prescriptions. The NHS Business Services Authority has advised that in 2024, 48,063 Penalty Charge Notices were issued to those who indicated they held a valid maternity exemption certificate that could not be validated.
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 (a) pharmacies and (b) GPs will be able to contribute to defining the best services to include in the planned expanded Pharmacy First scheme; and when he plans that the consultation will begin.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to expanding the role of pharmacies and to better using the skills of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. That includes embedding services such as Pharmacy First and making prescribing part of the services delivered by community pharmacists.
The current seven conditions covered by Pharmacy First clinical pathways were informed by guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and were designed with input from an expert panel of clinicians. NHS England will keep the clinical scope of this service under review.
The community pharmacy independent prescribing Pathfinder programme is currently piloting clinical models to inform a commissioning framework that can be used to deliver national and local National Health Service clinical services with a prescribing element.
NHS England is funding up to 3,000 existing pharmacists each year to become independent prescribers and upskill the existing workforce to play a greater role in multidisciplinary clinical teams. This ensures we have more independent prescribers working in the community than ever before and is expected to lead to more diverse and rewarding careers in the community providing direct care for patients.
To ensure adequate supervision during training, NHS England is also providing national funding of supervisors and Designated Prescribing Practitioners. This will ensure the NHS is ready to support and mentor the trainee pharmacists from 2025/26 alongside currently registered pharmacists learning to be independent prescribers.
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 help upskill existing pharmacists to enable them to become independent prescribers, in the context that, from 2026, all newly qualified pharmacists will become prescribers from the point of registration.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to expanding the role of pharmacies and to better using the skills of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. That includes embedding services such as Pharmacy First and making prescribing part of the services delivered by community pharmacists.
The current seven conditions covered by Pharmacy First clinical pathways were informed by guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and were designed with input from an expert panel of clinicians. NHS England will keep the clinical scope of this service under review.
The community pharmacy independent prescribing Pathfinder programme is currently piloting clinical models to inform a commissioning framework that can be used to deliver national and local National Health Service clinical services with a prescribing element.
NHS England is funding up to 3,000 existing pharmacists each year to become independent prescribers and upskill the existing workforce to play a greater role in multidisciplinary clinical teams. This ensures we have more independent prescribers working in the community than ever before and is expected to lead to more diverse and rewarding careers in the community providing direct care for patients.
To ensure adequate supervision during training, NHS England is also providing national funding of supervisors and Designated Prescribing Practitioners. This will ensure the NHS is ready to support and mentor the trainee pharmacists from 2025/26 alongside currently registered pharmacists learning to be independent prescribers.
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, if he will take steps to encourage (a) pharmacists and (b) independent prescribers to work in the community.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to expanding the role of pharmacies and to better using the skills of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. That includes embedding services such as Pharmacy First and making prescribing part of the services delivered by community pharmacists.
The current seven conditions covered by Pharmacy First clinical pathways were informed by guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and were designed with input from an expert panel of clinicians. NHS England will keep the clinical scope of this service under review.
The community pharmacy independent prescribing Pathfinder programme is currently piloting clinical models to inform a commissioning framework that can be used to deliver national and local National Health Service clinical services with a prescribing element.
NHS England is funding up to 3,000 existing pharmacists each year to become independent prescribers and upskill the existing workforce to play a greater role in multidisciplinary clinical teams. This ensures we have more independent prescribers working in the community than ever before and is expected to lead to more diverse and rewarding careers in the community providing direct care for patients.
To ensure adequate supervision during training, NHS England is also providing national funding of supervisors and Designated Prescribing Practitioners. This will ensure the NHS is ready to support and mentor the trainee pharmacists from 2025/26 alongside currently registered pharmacists learning to be independent prescribers.