Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to introduce at-home test kits for cervical smears.
Answered by Ashley Dalton
The Government has announced the introduction of human papilloma virus (HPV) self-testing in the National Health Service cervical screening programme for the under-screened population in England. The NHS has begun planning an in-service evaluation (ISE) of HPV self-testing in the wider population.
The purpose of the ISE is to ensure that the self-test is acceptable, accurate, and feasible compared with a clinician collected specimen, and to evaluate its impact on cervical screening uptake and ensure that the programme continues to prevent the same number of cancers. The findings of the ISE will inform any future UK National Screening Committee recommendation to ministers to offer self-testing across the whole population, alongside clinician-led screening.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is providing additional resources for respite care for parents.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
In England, the Care Act 2014 requires local authorities to deliver a wide range of high-quality care and support services, including support for carers.
The Government is making over £4.6 billion of additional funding available for adult social care in England in 2028/29 compared to 2025/26, to support the sector in making improvements. This includes additional grant funding, growth in other sources of income available to support adult social care, and an increase to the National Health Service contribution to adult social care via the Better Care Fund compared to 2025/26.
The Better Care Fund includes funding that can be used for carer support, including short breaks and respite services. Local areas determine how the money is best used to support carers, depending on local need and with reference to their statutory responsibilities.
We have raised the Carer’s Allowance earnings limit from £151 to £196 per week, the equivalent of 16 hours at the National Living Wage and representing the largest cash increase ever.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps he has taken to provide a 24/7 thrombectomy service.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England is working to increase the size of the workforce trained to deliver thrombectomy so that 24/7 access is available across England by April 2026.
To achieve this NHS England is working with the General Medical Council in approving a credential to support neuroradiologists to conduct thrombectomy and increase the number of thrombectomies that can be delivered.
In addition, NHS England’s National Medical Director and National Clinical Director for Stroke has supported comprehensive stroke centers in England to improve quality and reduce variation in thrombectomy delivery.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps he has taken to digitise patients’ medical records.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
£1.9 billion has been invested to ensure all National Health Service trusts achieve baseline digital capability, and 95% of trusts will have implemented or upgraded their Electronic Patient Record system (EPR) by March 2026, with the remainder planning to implement after this.
Recent areas for focus have been EPR optimisation, working to improve functionality, efficiency and usability, and a new tiger team service in the Frontline Digitisation Support offer for 2025/26, which is available to provide trusts with rapid on-site support at critical points of their EPR journey. The team’s work will also inform practical guidance to help other trusts deploy successfully and realise the benefits of digitisation.
NHS England is continuing to conduct digital maturity assessments to support local systems and trusts to prioritise and plan local digital investment.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
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 increase the number of blood donations.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is responsible for blood services in England and is delivering initiatives to increase blood donations. These include:
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance his Department provides on when a mental capacity review should be carried out on a patient.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) is designed to protect and empower people who lack the mental capacity to make a decision themselves. It says that every person must be presumed to have capacity to make the decision in question unless it is established otherwise, and sets out a two-stage test to establish if a person can make specific decisions regarding their care and treatment. Capacity assessments are done locally, and data is not collated or held centrally on how many assessments are carried out.
The Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) is a procedure prescribed in law under the MCA when a person who lacks mental capacity to consent to their care or treatment is being deprived of their liberty in a care home or hospital in order to keep them safe from harm. DoLS assessments data is collated and published, the most recent data available is for 2023/24.
In 2023/24 there were 323,870 DoLS applications completed, 145,945 fully assessed, 15,270 closed partially assessed, 162,655 closed without assessments, and 123,790 not completed at year end.
The MCA code of practice gives guidance to people who work with, or care for, people who can’t make decisions for themselves, including when a mental capacity assessment should be carried out, and by whom. Government is clear that professionals applying the MCA are expected to keep up to date with guidance and caselaw, and to correctly use the principles within the act.
In October 2025 we announced our intention to run a joint consultation with the Ministry of Justice to consult on Liberty Protection Safeguards and an updated draft of the Code of Practice in 2026.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many mental capacity assessments have been carried out on patients in each of the last five years.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) is designed to protect and empower people who lack the mental capacity to make a decision themselves. It says that every person must be presumed to have capacity to make the decision in question unless it is established otherwise, and sets out a two-stage test to establish if a person can make specific decisions regarding their care and treatment. Capacity assessments are done locally, and data is not collated or held centrally on how many assessments are carried out.
The Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) is a procedure prescribed in law under the MCA when a person who lacks mental capacity to consent to their care or treatment is being deprived of their liberty in a care home or hospital in order to keep them safe from harm. DoLS assessments data is collated and published, the most recent data available is for 2023/24.
In 2023/24 there were 323,870 DoLS applications completed, 145,945 fully assessed, 15,270 closed partially assessed, 162,655 closed without assessments, and 123,790 not completed at year end.
The MCA code of practice gives guidance to people who work with, or care for, people who can’t make decisions for themselves, including when a mental capacity assessment should be carried out, and by whom. Government is clear that professionals applying the MCA are expected to keep up to date with guidance and caselaw, and to correctly use the principles within the act.
In October 2025 we announced our intention to run a joint consultation with the Ministry of Justice to consult on Liberty Protection Safeguards and an updated draft of the Code of Practice in 2026.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, to detail the average waiting time for gynaecological consultant appointments, in each of the last five years, broken down by Health and Social Care Trust.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care does not hold waiting list data for health and social care trusts of Northern Ireland. Health policy is largely devolved, and this data is therefore held by the Department of Health in Northern Ireland.
In England, waiting list data for all specialities, including gynaecology services and median waiting times, is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/rtt-waiting-times/
This data does not provide a breakdown of waiting times for appointments and surgery, as waiting times are measured from referral to first definitive treatment, a decision not to treat, or when a patient has decided to refuse treatment.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, to detail the average waiting time for gynaecological surgery, in each of the last five years, broken down by Health and Social Care Trust.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care does not hold waiting list data for health and social care trusts of Northern Ireland. Health policy is largely devolved, and this data is therefore held by the Department of Health in Northern Ireland.
In England, waiting list data for all specialities, including gynaecology services and median waiting times, is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/rtt-waiting-times/
This data does not provide a breakdown of waiting times for appointments and surgery, as waiting times are measured from referral to first definitive treatment, a decision not to treat, or when a patient has decided to refuse treatment.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
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 improve waiting times for gynaecological (i) consultant appointments and (ii) surgery.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Reducing waiting lists is a key part of the Government’s Health Mission, and we are committed to cutting waiting times across all specialities, including gynaecology. We have committed to return to the National Health Service constitutional standard, that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to treatment, by March 2029. We are making good progress, as waiting lists have been cut by over 310,000 since the Government came into office, which includes almost 20,000 patients waiting for gynaecology treatment over the same period.
Our Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, set out the reforms we are making to improve gynaecology waiting times, across England. This includes innovative models of care that offer care closer to home and in the community, piloting gynaecology pathways in community diagnostic centres for patients with post-menopausal bleeding, and increasing the relative funding available to incentivise providers to take on more gynaecology procedures. It also includes expanding the number of surgical hubs, which provide valuable and protected capacity across elective specialities, including gynaecology. Currently, over half of the 125 operational elective surgical hubs in England provide gynaecology services. Wider elective reforms will help cut waiting times for gynaecology services, including more consistent clinical triage, tackling missed appointments, and scaling up remote monitoring and use of patient-initiated follow ups. We are also introducing an “online hospital”, through NHS Online. From 2027, people on certain pathways, including severe menopause symptoms and menstrual problems that may be a sign of endometriosis or fibroids, will have the choice of getting the specialist care they need from their home, providing additional appointments to cut waiting times.