Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon and Consett)
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 help improve the 37% referral rates of eligible patients for pulmonary rehabilitation.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
To improve referral rates for pulmonary rehabilitation (PR), NHS England has issued detailed guidance to integrated care boards on strengthening PR workforce capacity, ensuring safe staffing levels, and developing accessible service models to reduce health inequalities. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/pulmonary-rehabilitation-workforce/
NHS England has additionally recently published guidance on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) biologics that reiterates the need for PR to be taken into account when planning care for people with COPD. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/business-case-guidance-copd-biologics/
Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon and Consett)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the potential impact of increasing national pulmonary rehabilitation referral rates on (a) clinical outcomes for patients, (b) NHS emergency admission rates, and (c) economic productivity lost to respiratory-related illness and caring responsibilities.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is a clinically proven intervention that improves outcomes and reduces hospital admissions for people with chronic respiratory conditions. Health Education England reported in 2022 that increasing access to PR for people with lung conditions could save NHS England £69 million every year and see a reduction of 150,924 general practice appointments, and 26,633 fewer hospital admissions per year. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.hee.nhs.uk/sites/default/files/documents/Respiratory%20Disease%20Report.pdf
NHS England has additionally recently published guidance on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) biologics that reiterates the need for PR to be taken into account when planning care for people with COPD. This provides cost and health benefit information for integrated care boards to help create business cases for setting up COPD services. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/business-case-guidance-copd-biologics/
NHS England holds a quarterly PR steering group that provides direction, challenge and support for decision-making, and monitors progress against set metrics as reported through the national respiratory audit programme. Further information is available at the following link:
Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon and Consett)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps are being taken to improve access to pulmonary rehabilitation for adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease living in Blaydon and Consett constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
In the Blaydon and Consett area, pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is primarily delivered by the Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust. Since April 2024, the trust's physiotherapy and occupational therapy services have undertaken a comprehensive redesign of the PR service. This restructure aims to ensure equity of access for all patients across the referral catchment area and to guarantee consistency in both the clinical content and delivery of the course.
The redesigned service is now fully operational, and the trust will be monitoring patient outcomes and attendance figures throughout the coming year to ensure the new structure delivers the intended improvements in patient health and service reach.
Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon and Consett)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he make an assessment of the potential merits of a Modern Service Framework for respiratory health to help improve referral and take up rates of pulmonary rehabilitation.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government will consider long-term conditions for future waves of modern service frameworks (MSFs), including respiratory conditions. The criteria for determining other conditions for future MSFs will be based on where there is potential for rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. After the initial wave of MSFs is complete, the National Quality Board will determine the conditions to prioritise for new MSFs as part of its work programme.
Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon and Consett)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what progress he has made with Cabinet colleagues on helping reduce the number of employers underpaying the National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As a Government we are clear: everyone must get the pay they are entitled to.
In 2024/25, HMRC identified £5.8 million owed to 25,000 workers and issued 750 penalties worth £4.2 million to employers.
We are going further- setting up the Fair Work Agency to improve join up with other enforcement and will ensure that every complaint a worker makes will be followed up. We will also publish names of employers breaching the minimum wage more regularly, helping to level the playing field for the vast majority of businesses who do play by the rules.
These reforms will benefit constituents in my honourable friend's area and across the country.
Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon and Consett)
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 promoting the document entitled BS 30480 Suicide and the workplace: Intervention, prevention and support for people affected by suicide, published on 4 November 2025, to employers as part of workplace wellbeing initiatives.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I am grateful to the hon. Member for her tireless work on suicide prevention. Every suicide is a tragedy that leaves a profound and enduring impact on families, friends, and communities. Tackling suicide is one of the Government’s top priorities and we are committed to delivering the Suicide Prevention Strategy for England with a range of partners.
Everyone has a part to play in preventing suicide and employers are essential to ensuring supportive workplace communities and to highlighting the importance of intervention, prevention, and support for people affected by suicide.
We have referenced BS 30480 in the Men’s Health Strategy, published on 19 November 2025, alongside our plans to invest up to £3.6 million over the next three years to deliver neighbourhood-based suicide prevention support pathfinders for middle-aged men, co-designed with experts and men with lived experience.
Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon and Consett)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what discussions he has had with Ofgem on reforming the energy market.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
For too long consumers have been let down by a broken energy market, with sky-high bills and poor customer service during a cost-of-living crisis.
That’s why we’re reforming Ofgem, providing it with the powers it needs to protect consumers and ensuring it’s a strong champion for families across the country.
Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon and Consett)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that hospitals follow NICE guidelines on (a) suicide and (b) self-harm risk assessment (i) tools and (ii) scales.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
Improving risk management and safety planning for suicide and self-harm prevention is a priority in the Government’s suicide prevention strategy. The strategy highlights the importance of compliance with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) guidelines on risk assessment. NHS England is taking forward work in this area.
We would expect health professionals to have regard to guidelines from the NICE, which state that risk assessment tools should not be used to predict future suicide or repetition of self-harm.
Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon and Consett)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of automatically notifying women with neurofibromatosis type 1 before their 40th birthday that they are eligible to attend breast cancer screening from the age of 40 years.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
Currently women with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) who are considered at moderate or high risk of breast cancer, can be referred through clinical professionals such as specialists in genetics or oncology for annual breast screening which is managed at a local level.
An assessment has not made of the potential merits of automatically notifying women with NF1 before they are 40 years old that they are eligible to attend breast cancer screening from the age of 40 years.
Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon and Consett)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she has taken with NHS England to help raise awareness by (a) patients and (b) GPs of the increased risk of breast cancer in people with neurofibromatosis type 1.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
The Department works with NHS England to raise awareness of cancers, including for people with increased risk of cancer. In January 2024, NHS England relaunched the Help Us Help You cancer awareness campaign, designed to increase earlier diagnosis by encouraging people to come forward with suspected signs of cancers.
For individuals with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), who are at increased risk of breast cancer, the National Health Service in England recommends breast screening from the age of 40 years old. It is important that awareness of this is widespread among patients and general practices (GPs). Treatment for NF1 involves regular monitoring, and if a patient develops complex problems, their GP can usually refer them to one of two specialist NHS centres, so that a treatment plan can be drawn up. These centres are at Guy’s and St Thomas’ in London, and at Manchester University Hospital.
We expect clinicians to keep themselves appraised of developments within conditions, and to refer to the National Institute for Clinical Excellence guidance as part of their clinical decision-making process.