Asked by: Patrick Hurley (Labour - Southport)
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 adequacy of the level of funding allocated by his Department for research and innovation for (a) less survivable and (b) other cancers.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department invests over £1.6 billion each year on research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), with cancer as one of its largest areas of spend reflecting its high priority.
An example of this is the NIHR investing £2.4 million into the miONCO-Dx trial, which seeks to develop a blood test designed to detect 12 different cancers, that could transform how cancer is diagnosed in the National Health Service.
The NIHR is also funding a new artificial intelligence (AI) powered radiology analysis service, designed to develop and evaluate the use of AI in medical imaging to improve the detection of cancers. The use of this technology will help to speed up response times and provide more accurate diagnoses and better-targeted treatments, ultimately improving outcomes for patients.
Whist no assessment has been made specifically on the adequacy of the research into less survivable cancers, the NIHR continues to welcome further high-quality proposals from researchers to inform approaches to prevention, treatment, and care in relation to less survivable cancers.
Furthermore, the Department is committed to ensuring that all patients, including those with rare cancers, have access to cutting-edge clinical trials and innovative, lifesaving treatments. The forthcoming National Cancer Plan will include further details on how the NHS will improve diagnosis and outcomes for all cancer patients in England, including for rare and less common cancers.
Asked by: Patrick Hurley (Labour - Southport)
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 encourage research into detection (a) tools and (b) tests for the early detection of (i) pancreatic and (ii) other less survivable cancers.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Research is crucial in tackling cancer, which is why the Department invests £1.6 billion each year on research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). Cancer is one of the largest areas of spend at over £133 million in 2023/24, reflecting its high priority.
These investments are pivotal to informing our efforts to improve cancer prevention, treatment, and outcomes. An example of this investment is Imperial College London’s research on breath tests to detect less survivable cancers, including pancreatic cancer. Further information on the research is available at the following link:
https://imperialbrc.nihr.ac.uk/2023/06/05/imperial-led-uk-cancer-breath-tests-reach-final-stages/
Another example of Government investment was the launch of the NIHR’s national Brain Tumour Research Consortium in September 2024, which is bringing together researchers from a range of different disciplines and institutions with the aim of making scientific advances in how we prevent, detect, manage, and treat rare and less-survivable brain tumours in adults and children.
The NIHR welcomes further high-quality proposals from researchers to inform approaches to prevention, treatment, and care in relation to less survivable cancers. Furthermore, the Government is committed to ensuring that all patients have access to cutting-edge clinical trials and innovative, lifesaving treatments. The Government supports the Rare Cancers Bill and its ambitions to incentivise clinical trials and access to innovative treatments for rare cancers.
The forthcoming National Cancer Plan will include further details on how the National Health Service will improve diagnosis and outcomes for all cancer patients in England, including for less common cancers.
Asked by: Patrick Hurley (Labour - Southport)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of trends in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survival rates in the North West.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise that there is more to do to improve cardiac arrest survival rates, including in the North West. The National Health Service 10-Year Health Plan addresses cardiac arrest at a national level through a broad focus on cardiovascular disease detection and prevention. Key initiatives include improving the early detection and treatment of high-risk conditions like atrial fibrillation, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol, known as the ABCs, to prevent heart attacks and strokes, which can lead to cardiac arrest.
Asked by: Patrick Hurley (Labour - Southport)
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 impact of the time taken to implement the Women’s Health Strategy on LGBTQ+ people ageing out of NHS fertility eligibility.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that fertility treatment across the National Health Service in England is subject to variation in access. In light of broader pressures on the NHS and ongoing changes within NHS England, we have been looking again at achievable ambitions to improve access to fertility services and fairness for all affected couples.
Work continues between the Department and NHS England to better understand NHS-funded fertility services and the effectiveness of these services including the issue for LGBTQ+ people and specifically same-sex female couples. This work will take time to develop, however, the Department is keen to ensure there will be stakeholder engagement during this process beginning in the new year.
Funding decisions for health services in England are made by integrated care boards (ICBs) and are based on the clinical needs of their population. We expect ICBs to commission fertility services in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines ensuring equal access to fertility treatment across England.
NICE is currently reviewing the fertility guidelines and will consider whether the current recommendations for access to NHS-funded treatment are still appropriate. A consultation on revised guidelines was published on 10 September, which is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/indevelopment/gid-ng10263/consultation/html-content-2
Asked by: Patrick Hurley (Labour - Southport)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has set a national timeline for equal access to NHS-funded fertility treatment.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that fertility treatment across the National Health Service in England is subject to variation in access. Work continues between the Department and NHS England to better understand the offer around NHS-funded fertility services. This work will take time to develop, and the Department is keen to ensure there will be stakeholder engagement during this process, beginning in the new year.
Funding decisions for health services in England are made by integrated care boards (ICBs) and are based on the clinical needs of their population. We expect ICBs to commission fertility services in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines ensuring equal access to fertility treatment across England.
NICE is currently reviewing the fertility guidelines and will consider whether the current recommendations for access to NHS-funded treatment are still appropriate. A consultation on revised guidelines was published on 10 September 2025, which is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/indevelopment/gid-ng10263/consultation/html-content-2
Asked by: Patrick Hurley (Labour - Southport)
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 ensure that Integrated Care Boards remove the requirement for self-funded intrauterine insemination for same-sex couples.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that fertility treatment across the National Health Service in England is subject to variation in access. Work continues between the Department and NHS England to better understand the offer around NHS-funded fertility services including the issue for female same sex couples.
Funding decisions for health services in England are made by integrated care boards (ICBs) and are based on the clinical needs of their population. We expect ICBs to commission fertility services in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines ensuring equal access to fertility treatment across England.
NICE is currently reviewing the fertility guidelines and will consider whether the current recommendations for access to NHS-funded treatment are still appropriate. A consultation on revised guidelines was published on 10 September 2025, which is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/indevelopment/gid-ng10263/consultation/html-content-2
In light of broader pressures on the National Health Service and ongoing changes within NHS England, we have been looking again at achievable ambitions to improve access to fertility services and fairness for all affected couples.
Asked by: Patrick Hurley (Labour - Southport)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to ensure that patients taking weight loss medication have equitable access to community-based (a) weight management and (b) lifestyle support services.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Both the license and National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance for these medicines specify that they should be prescribed alongside a reduced calorie diet and physical activity. NICE guidance also states that healthcare professionals should arrange information, support, and counselling on additional diet, physical activity, and behavioural strategies when these medicines are prescribed.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning health services within their area in line with local population need and taking account of relevant guidance. NHS England has, however, also made a central wraparound service available that ICBs can use, known as Healthier You: Behavioural Support for Obesity Prescribing, for patients to be referred into, with a procurement underway for a longer-term offer. This central service focuses on nutrition, physical activity, and psychological support.
Asked by: Patrick Hurley (Labour - Southport)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of establishing a national multi-cancer case-finding initiative to identify people at higher risk of (a) pancreatic and (b) other less survivable cancers.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England is working on case-finding approaches for less survivable cancers, where the evidence suggests this is appropriate. This includes a public-facing Family History Checker, which enables people and their families affected by pancreatic cancer to self-assess if they may inherit risk. Individuals identified as being at risk are referred directly to the European Registry of Hereditary Pancreatic Diseases research trial, which aims to understand inherited conditions of the pancreas. Referrals to the trial can be made by any healthcare professional across all health sectors or by individuals via self-referral, contributing to a centralised approach to case-finding.
The National Disease Registration Service is developing a National Inherited Cancer Predisposition Register (NICPR), which launched on 30 June. The NICPR looks at a wide range of cancers for which there is an increased inherited risk, including for less survivable cancers. It aims to identify high-risk individuals who are eligible for targeted screening and surveillance and will act as an electronic referral route into national screening programmes where these exist.
Asked by: Patrick Hurley (Labour - Southport)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to incorporate clinical trials as a performance metric within the NHS to encourage clinicians to prioritise research.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
As outlined in the 10-Year Health Plan and Life Sciences Sector Plan, the Government is committed to providing full transparency on clinical trial performance by publishing a monthly scorecard for the National Health Service on trust-level clinical trial performance, in addition to wider measures to encourage clinicians to prioritise research through the UK Clinical Research Delivery (UKCRD) Programme.
The four-nation UKCRD programme brings together delivery partners and key stakeholders to create a faster, more efficient, more accessible, and more innovative clinical research delivery system in the United Kingdom.
In April 2025, the Department began publishing monthly key performance indicators on commercial clinical trial set up performance for all NHS trusts in England, as part of the four-nation UKCRD programme Study Set Up Plan.
Trust level data on clinical trials study set up is being published monthly alongside the UKCRD’s Key Performance Indicator Report to provide an additional monthly snapshot of site-level commercial study set-up performance.
In May 2025, NHS England wrote a letter to NHS providers requiring board-level reporting of research activity and income, with scrutiny of the UKCRD Programme’s site-level performance metrics for study set-up. NHS England will publish revised guidance on research financial management later in 2025.
Asked by: Patrick Hurley (Labour - Southport)
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 monitor people with inherited cancer risk for less survivable cancers.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department is supporting NHS England with initiatives to monitor people with an inherited risk of less survivable cancers. The 10-Year Health Plan commits to expanding genomic testing for inherited causes of major diseases to allow for earlier detection and intervention, including for cancer.
In June 2024, NHS England launched the national NHS Jewish BRCA Testing Programme to identify cancer earlier for people with Jewish ancestry, including genetic testing for patients diagnosed historically with an eligible breast or ovarian cancer. BRCA genetic mutations carry a risk of developing other cancers such as pancreatic cancer.
For pancreatic cancer, which the latest data showed has the lowest survivable rate with inherited risk, NHS England is working with The European Registry of Hereditary Pancreatitis and Familial Pancreatic Cancer, Pancreatic Cancer UK, and Cancer Alliances to improve surveillance pathways and access to surveillance for people with inherited high risk of pancreatic cancer.
In June 2025, NHS England launched a new initiative for general practices to analyse patient records to identify people aged over 60 years old who have the key early warning signs and symptoms of pancreatic cancer including diabetes and sudden weight loss. Additionally, Pancreatic Cancer UK has launched the Family History Checker, supported by NHS England. The tool allows people, and their families, affected by pancreatic cancer to self-assess if they have inherited risk.
Furthermore, improving the early detection of cancers, including less survival cancers, is also a priority for the National Cancer Plan, which will be published later this year.