Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
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 make treatment available to people with Irritable bowel syndrome.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise the significant impact that irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) can have on a person’s quality of life. We want a society where every person, including those with one or more long-term conditions like IBS, receives high-quality, compassionate care.
To support the early diagnosis and effective management of IBS, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has produced guidance, which is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg61
NICE has also produced guidance specifically on the use of faecal calprotectin tests as a way of diagnosing inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). This is a non-invasive, inexpensive method for assessing patients, which has a 90% sensitivity for distinguishing between IBD and IBS.
The Royal College of General Practitioners has produced an e-learning module on the IBS pathway. The course covers the investigation of patients who present with lower gastrointestinal symptoms that are likely to be IBS, the red flags to look out for, how to make a confident diagnosis in primary care, and how to manage patients in line with NICE guidance.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of providing the covid-19 vaccination to pensioners under 75; and how he made that estimate.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to protecting those most vulnerable to COVID-19 through vaccination, as guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).
Population immunity to COVID-19 has been increasing due to a combination of naturally acquired immunity following recovery from infection and vaccine-derived immunity. COVID-19 is now a relatively mild disease for most people, though it can still be unpleasant, with rates of hospitalisation and death from COVID-19 having reduced significantly since COVID-19 first emerged.
The focus of the JCVI advised national programme has therefore moved towards targeted vaccination of those who continue to be at higher risk of serious disease, including mortality. In line with JCVI advice, in autumn 2025 a COVID-19 vaccination is being offered to:
- adults aged 75 years old and over;
- residents in care homes for older adults; and
- individuals aged six months old and over who are immunosuppressed.
The JCVI’s advice for COVID-19 for autumn 2025 was informed by a standard cost-effectiveness assessment, in line with other routine vaccinations in the national immunisation programme, and the JCVI Code of Practice. The JCVI operates within a framework similar to that used by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to support optimal use of health service resources.
The JCVI’s advice for autumn 2025, including the rationale and approach to cost effectiveness, is available at the following link:
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent progress he has made on the roll-out of Fracture Liaison Services.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Fracture Liaison Services are commissioned by integrated care boards, which are well-placed to make decisions according to local need. Our 10-Year Health Plan committed to rolling out Fracture Liaison Services across every part of the country by 2030.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
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 improve (a) maternal and (b) post-natal care.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We continue to work with NHS England as it delivers its three-year maternity and neonatal plan to grow the workforce, develop a culture of safety, and ensure women and babies receive safe, personalised, and compassionate care. We know there is much more we need to do, however good progress has been made, including:
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support his Department provides to women who have suffered from post-birth trauma.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department recognises the significant physical and psychological consequences of birth trauma and the devastating impact this can have on some women. We are fully committed to improving the quality and consistency of care for women throughout pregnancy, birth, and the critical months that follow, and ensuring that when a woman experiences a traumatic birth, there is a broad range of support available.
The National Health Service is in its final year of implementing the Three-Year Delivery Plan for Maternity and Neonatal Services. As part of this plan, there is a commitment to improving postnatal care for all women and babies, including those affected by birth trauma. This includes ensuring the provision of high-quality, personalised, and joined-up care throughout the postnatal period.
NHS England has published guidance, written in collaboration with the Royal College of General Practitioners, on the six-to-eight-week postnatal check-up for all women who have given birth. This provides an important opportunity for general practitioners to listen to women in a discreet, supportive environment, to provide personalised postnatal care for their physical and mental health, and to support them with family planning. This includes an explicit reference to birth trauma for the first time. Additionally, a range of specialist mental health services have been made available to women during the perinatal period, as well as physical health services like Perinatal Pelvic Health Services. As of April 2025, 25 of the 42 local systems have perinatal pelvic health services in place, and NHS England is working closely with the remaining areas who are not compliant.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with manufacturers of Pancreatic Enzyme Replacement Therapy medication on supply shortages.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department is in regular discussion with all suppliers of pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy (PERT) on latest stock availability and the actions that are being taken mitigate the supply issue that is affecting the whole of the United Kingdom. Through these discussions we have managed to secure additional volumes of PERT for 2025 for the UK. We are continuing to work with all suppliers to understand what more can be done to add further resilience to the market. The Department has also reached out to specialist importers who have sourced unlicensed stock to assist in covering the remaining gap in the market.
In the longer term, the Department has had interest from non-UK suppliers wishing to bring their products to the UK and, along with colleagues in the Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, we are working with these potential suppliers; if authorised these products could further diversify and strengthen the market.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will respond to the recommendations on the use of sodium valproate in the Hughes report, published 7 February 2024.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is carefully considering the valuable work done by the Patient Safety Commissioner and the resulting Hughes Report. The report sets out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh. The Government will be providing an update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s Report at the earliest opportunity.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
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 availability of anti-epileptic medication.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department is working hard with industry to help resolve the intermittent supply issues with some epilepsy medications. As a result of ongoing activity and intensive work, including directing suppliers to expedite deliveries, most issues, including with carbamazepine, lamotrigine, and oxcarbazepine presentations, have been resolved.
We are currently aware of an ongoing supply issue with all strengths of topiramate tablets from one manufacturer. This supply issue is expected to resolve by the end of May 2025. We are also aware of a shortage of phenobarbital 15 milligram tablets from one manufacturer, with the resupply date to be confirmed. In both cases, alternative suppliers are in stock with sufficient supply to support patients, and these issues have been communicated to the National Health Service.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
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 provision for NHS dentists in Ealing Central and Acton constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term and increase access to NHS dental care, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the Ealing Central and Acton constituency, this is the NHS Northwest London ICB.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
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 rates of (a) prevention and (b) early diagnosis of liver disease.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne
The Department is aware of the burden of undiagnosed liver disease in the population, and its impact on health and the working years of life lost.
Community Liver Health Checks are being piloted in 19 areas to identify patients with cirrhosis or advanced fibrosis, who are at high risk of hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC). These patients will be referred into, and supported to engage with, National Institute for Care and Excellence recommended six-monthly liver cancer surveillance. Many of the patients identified by this route will also receive lifestyle advice and support which aims to reduce future cancer incidence. From June 2022 to October 2024, over 80,000 fibroscans have been delivered and over 5,600 people have been referred for cancer surveillance.
The Community Liver Health Checks programme is also funding a primary care case finding pilot, which uses primary care records to identify patients at high risk of cirrhosis, and offers them blood tests and fibroscans. The pilots are due to finish in December 2024. To date, over 12,400 people have been tested, and 288 people have been identified to have advanced liver disease requiring cancer surveillance.
More widely, NHS England is also focussed on developing pathways for the early diagnosis of fatty liver disease, and prevention via the work to reduce hepatitis C and B infections and to reduce obesity rates. In addition, the NHS Cancer Programme is working to detect more HCCs, the most common liver cancer, at an early stage, when the chances of survival are higher.