Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what clinical monitoring arrangements are in place for prisoners who have been on hunger strike for more than 14 days.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Healthcare services in the prison estate are commissioned by NHS England. All prison healthcare providers are commissioned and contracted to use National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines and have pathways of care in place for people refusing food and/or fluid. If a person requires hospital care this will also be available and facilitated.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what progress has been made towards publishing a formal Government response to the Older People’s Housing Taskforce report.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government is committed to enhancing provision and choice for older people in the housing market and we will continue to consider this issue as we develop our long-term housing strategy.
As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 26 November 2024 (HCWS249), the government is giving careful consideration to the recommendations from the Older People’s Housing Taskforce report including in relation to specialist accommodation for older people.
The government is consulting on changes to the NPPF, including proposed changes to support the delivery of specialist forms of accommodation such as housing for older people. The consultation is open for responses until 10 March 2026 and can be found on gov.uk here.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Government plans to require retirement housing operators to provide leaseholders with more detailed annual reporting on how management fees, including any surplus or excess sums, are spent or retained.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 95245 on 5 December 2025.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the proposals in the Strengthening Leaseholder Protections Over Charges and Services consultation are intended to apply to event fees in retirement villages.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 95245 on 5 December 2025.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment has been made of the potential impact of court backlogs on health outcomes for prisoners held on remand.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The Government inherited a justice system in crisis, with a record and rising open caseload of nearly 80,000 criminal cases waiting to be heard in the Crown Court and too many victims waiting years for justice. That is why the Government commissioned Sir Brian Leveson to conduct an Independent Review of the Criminal Courts. On 2 December, the Deputy Prime Minister announced a major programme of court reform to tackle these unacceptable delays and restore confidence in the criminal justice system. As part of our ongoing efforts to improve timeliness and efficiency in our criminal courts, we also asked Sir Brian to review court operations and make recommendations designed to boost court efficiency in Part 2 of his review. We are awaiting that report in the New Year and will look to act on its recommendations.
We are committed to working with our health partners to ensure that people in prison including those on remand have access to an equivalent standard, range and quality of health care in prisons to that available in the wider community to support their health outcomes. This is reflected in the National Partnership Agreement on Health and Social Care in England. This includes access to a range of treatments and interventions within prison as set out in the national service specification for mental health care in prisons.
For prisoners with severe mental health needs, the Mental Health Act (2025) received Royal Assent in December and contains several flagship reforms to improve access to mental health care and treatment, including, but not limited to, provisions to:
Introduce a new statutory 28-day time limit for transfers from prison and other places of detention to hospital to reduce unnecessary delays experienced by prisoners who require mental health treatment.
Stop courts temporarily detaining people with severe mental illness in prison as a ‘place of safety’ whilst awaiting a hospital bed for treatment or assessment under the Mental Health Act; and
End the use of remand for own protection under the Bail Act where the court’s sole concern is the defendant’s mental health.
We will implement these reforms as soon as it is safe to do so.
The Sentencing Bill, currently being considered before parliament, introduces a package of amendments to the Bail Act (1976), which, alongside the presumption to suspend short sentences of 12 months or less, will help to address the unsustainable growth in the prison remand population.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
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 ensure that NHS services make reasonable adjustments to accommodate additional need when treating children with (a) SEND and (b) level 3 autism.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is dedicated to ensuring that National Health Services are accessible for everyone, including for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and those who are autistic. In accordance with the Equality Act 2010, public sector organisations must implement reasonable adjustments to enhance accessibility for disabled individuals. All organisations that provide NHS care or adult social care must follow the Accessible Information Standard.
A key initiative being rolled out is the Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag, supported by e-learning for health and care staff. The flag helps healthcare and social care providers identify and implement necessary reasonable adjustments for people, including any adjustment needs relevant to their SEND or autism, and supports provision of appropriate care.
NHS England has published a range of guidance to support tailored care provision. Guidance on Meeting the Needs of Autistic Adults in Mental Health Settings highlights the need for tailored support for autistic individuals facing mental health difficulties, and is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/meeting-the-needs-of-autistic-adults-in-mental-health-services/
Guidance on health and care passports sets out how passports should record a person’s health and care information, such as communication preferences, supporting consistent, and tailored care. Further information on this guidance is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/health-and-care-passports-implementation-guidance/
Furthermore, under the Health and Care Act 2022, all Care Quality Commission registered providers are required to ensure their staff receive specific training on learning disability and autism, appropriate to their role. The Government is rolling out its preferred package, the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism, to the health and adult social care workforce.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how the 10 year Workforce Plan will help tackle regional variations in access to specialist care for people with (a) long-term and (b) complex conditions.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan which will ensure the National Health Service has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it. Its development will include consideration of regional variations in access to specialist care.
We are committed to working with partners to ensure the plan meets its aims and will engage independent experts to make sure the plan is ambitious, forward looking, and evidence based.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was for the diagnosis of a neurological condition in the last 12 months.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department does not hold data specifically on the time taken to reach a confirmed diagnosis of a neurological condition. There is no national dataset that measures the exact time from referral to confirmed diagnosis, as pathways vary by condition and may involve multiple tests and consultations.
We recognise the importance of timely diagnosis and remain committed to delivering the National Health Service constitutional standard for 92% of patients to wait no longer than 18 weeks from Referral to Treatment by March 2029. We are investing in additional capacity to deliver appointments to help bring lists and waiting times down. The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out the specific productivity and reform efforts needed to return to the constitutional standard.
Additionally, by expanding community-based services for routine monitoring and follow up, employing artificial intelligence for productivity, and investing in digital tools and data, as outlined in the 10-Year Health Plan, we can ensure that consultants’ time is reserved for complex cases, including specialist diagnostic assessments, for patients with neurological conditions.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
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 number of clinical specialists in Parkinson's disease that will need to be recruited in each of the next five years.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No specific assessment has been made.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to publish regular reports on workforce numbers in neurological services.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has no plans to publish regular reports specifically on workforce numbers in neurological services.
However, NHS England already publishes monthly data on the National Health Service Hospital and Community Health Service workforce in England. This includes data on doctors working in specialities that support neurological services who are employed by NHS provider trusts and integrated care boards.
A time series containing recent data, including selected preliminary statistics for August 2025, can be found within the July 2025 publication of statistics, within the file NHS Workforce Statistics, July 2025 Doctors by Grade and Speciality. Within this file, the full-time equivalent numbers of doctors working in specialities that come under neurological services are available at the following link:
https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-workforce-statistics
There are many other professions who are key to the delivery of neurological services, such as nurses, speech and language therapists, and occupational therapists. However, the data published on these professions is not detailed enough to show the service delivery area which these professions work in.