Community Hospitals

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Tuesday 16th June 2026 Westminster Hall

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Mrs Sharon Hodgson)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship this morning, Sir Jeremy. I congratulate the hon. Member for South Cotswolds (Dr Savage) on securing this important debate. I thank all hon. Members who have taken part: we have heard from 10 Back-Bench Members on the issue this morning. We have heard powerful accounts of the value of community hospitals and community health services more widely, and the difference that these services can make to patients and their families. That can be particularly true for rural communities, as we have heard.

I also want to acknowledge my hon. Friend the Member for Cumbernauld and Kirkintilloch (Katrina Murray). I think she said that she had worked for 22 years in community hospitals, and she spoke powerfully about being at work in her community hospital 10 years ago today when the news broke about our good friend Jo Cox. I join my hon. Friend in offering deepest condolences to Jo’s sister, my hon. Friend the Member for Spen Valley (Kim Leadbeater), to the wider family and to Brendan and their children. We can all recall where we were on that awful day when we heard the horrifying news.

This debate goes to the heart of a wider question: how we deliver more care closer to home, and the role of community hospitals in that future. That is why the Government’s ambition to shift more care out of hospitals and into communities matters so much. As we look to the future of the NHS, we want a stronger neighbourhood health service, better integration between health and social care and easier access to support, closer to where people live. To do this, we will deliver 250 neighbourhood health centres, with 120 of them opening by 2030. That will make it easier for people to access care closer to where they live, up and down the country. These centres will provide easier, more convenient access to a wide range of health and care services on people’s doorstep. We want to see a neighbourhood health centre in every community.

[Dr Luke Evans]

The Government have set out a great ambition, but the Minister is talking about neighbourhood health centres and we are talking about community hospitals. Where do they dovetail and how do they fit? What definition is she using to put this together?

[Mrs Hodgson]

Hopefully, I will answer those very points as I make progress in my speech.

We are already taking forward the neighbourhood health centres. The first wave of 27 neighbourhood health centres has been announced across England, backed by £50 million. Community health services are a vital part of our ambition on neighbourhood health and in moving care into communities. As we have heard, community health services deliver a wide range of services, from adult musculoskeletal services to community paediatric services and more.

Recognising the vital role that community health services play in neighbourhood health, and the wider health and care system, we have set clear ambitions through our medium-term planning framework. For the first time, we have set a target for systems to reduce long waits for community health services. By 2028-29, at least 80% of activity delivered by community health services should take place within 18 weeks, bringing those services in line with targets for elective care.

In 2025, we published “Standardising Community Health Services”, which describes the core components of NHS ICB-funded community health services for children, young people and adults. ICBs will need to adapt based on local needs and priorities. Further guidance was published in February 2026 with additional detail on the community health services that ICBs should commission. This is hugely important: we know that there is variation between the services available across the country and that there are long waits. That is why the Government are taking action to reduce unwarranted variation and cut those waits, so people can access high-quality community services wherever they live.

[Dr Evans]

I am sorry to hammer this home, but every single point that the Minister has made has been about community services. She is spot on, but the question is where community hospitals fit in. Are they the correct vehicle that the Government want to use to help deliver some of those services, or are the Government moving away from the community hospital model and into further hubs? Both would be reasonable approaches and could be defended or pulled apart. The question is what the Government are choosing, because it is not clear from the Minister’s answers which it is.

[Mrs Hodgson]

As the hon. Gentleman has acknowledged, this is not actually my brief. As much as I can try to answer his questions, I think I might have to commit that the relevant Minister will write to him on that specific point.

For patients who still require hospital care, we are delivering millions of additional appointments and reducing waiting lists across elective care. The Government’s elective reform plan sets out commitments to reduce disparities across elective care access and waiting times, including by improving practical support for patients through better transport options. Virtual care models will offer patients in remote areas better access and more convenience by providing services that are more responsive to their needs. Expanding digital access is also crucial to improving the experience and health outcomes for rural communities. Digital services can improve access for many patients, but they must complement, not replace, high-quality, local face-to-face care.

[Helen Maguire]

I want to expand on that point because, as we have heard from Members, there are many elderly people in rural communities who may or may not have access to digital services. Will the Minister provide some assurances to me and my hon. Friends that elderly people will not be excluded because they cannot access services digitally?

[Mrs Hodgson]

Absolutely. Digital services will complement and not replace the face-to-face care, so we are developing the NHS app and expanding online consultations for those for whom it will be helpful. There will be digital triage and remote monitoring, allowing patients in rural areas to access more NHS services, but I take on board the hon. Lady’s point about ensuring that we do not exclude people.

It is important to recognise that decisions about individual services are made locally by NHS organisations, which are responsible for assessing the needs of their populations and planning services accordingly. As strategic commissioners, ICBs work closely with health and wellbeing boards, local authorities and other partners to identify the most impactful outcomes for their population. ICBs will choose the right delivery model for their local area to deliver these outcomes, enabling capable providers to lead local services designed to meet the needs of their patients. That means looking carefully at local need, rurality, the workforce, clinical evidence and the long-term sustainability of services, rather than applying a one-size-fits-all model. Those decisions must be accompanied by appropriate engagement with patients, staff and local communities.

The hon. Member for South Cotswolds highlighted an important challenge. Whether national ambitions are matched by what people say and experience on the ground is a question we must take seriously. If we are to successfully shift care closer to home, community-based services must be equipped to meet growing demand. In Cirencester, as we have heard, local provision remains very important. Existing services continue at the hon. Member’s local hospital, including in-patient and out-patient care, therapies and the minor injury and illness unit. Local NHS partners are also testing how services can better meet local need, including a specialist 15-bed frailty complex care unit alongside a 28-bed intermediate care ward. These changes are being tested locally and evaluated carefully; I am told that no permanent decisions have been made.

I have made a careful note of the hon. Member’s five questions, as I am sure my officials have. I will ensure that the relevant Minister writes to her with further details on her specific questions; I will also request that they meet her, as her fifth request was about when that could be arranged. On staffing in particular, I can update her: the NHS workforce plan is to be published imminently.

The pressures that hon. Members have described are familiar across much of the country. We have an ageing population, an increasing prevalence of long-term conditions, growing demand for rehabilitation and recovery services and, in some areas, significant population growth driven by new housing developments. These pressures make local community-based services more important, not less. Meeting those challenges will require strong, joined-up community services, with community nursing, therapies, rehabilitation, urgent community response, virtual wards, and primary care and social care working together across the needs of patients.

Ultimately, the future of community hospitals should not be considered in isolation. They form part of a broader community heath infrastructure that includes neighbourhood teams, community providers, primary care, mental health services, social care and the voluntary sector. The question is not simply how many community hospitals we have, but how we use our community assets and services to provide high-quality care closer to home.

I am very grateful to the hon. Member for South Cotswolds for bringing this important issue before the House. The debate has highlighted both the enduring value of community hospitals and the important role that they can play in supporting local populations, especially rural ones. As we continue our work to strengthen neighbourhood health services and shift care closer to home, the experiences and concerns raised by hon. Members today will make an important contribution to that discussion. I thank all hon. Members for their participation in this debate.

Secondary Breast Cancer

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Thursday 11th June 2026 Westminster Hall

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Mrs Sharon Hodgson)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Betts. I am very grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for City of Durham (Mary Kelly Foy) and the hon. Member for Wokingham (Clive Jones) for raising this important matter and securing the debate. They both spoke about their own breast cancer journeys very powerfully, and I thank them for sharing their personal experiences with us.

It is also personal to me, having gone through it not myself, but through my mother-in-law, who we lost to breast cancer almost 30 years ago. She was just 62, which is not much older than I am now. Thirty years ago, that age seemed a long way off, but now that I am 60, it does not seem very old at all. My father-in-law, who is in his nineties, is still with us, which made me realise how much life this terrible disease robbed her of. Her secondary breast cancer—like that of my hon. Friend the Member for West Lancashire (Ashley Dalton)—was diagnosed 10 years after her primary breast cancer. That struck me and brought it back to mind. I was thinking how glad and happy I am that the treatment now is so much better than it was 30 years ago, and that my hon. Friend is very much still alive and kicking—and in great voice, as we have all heard today.

Losing my mother-in-law at such a young age spurred me on, as a new MP in 2005, to join the all-party parliamentary group on breast cancer. I went on to be an officer and then chair for a number of years. Now that I am in government, I feel an immense responsibility resting on my shoulders. I want to do the right thing not just in memory of my mother-in-law, but for all hon. Members who have shared their stories and those of constituents and campaigners, and for all those I have met since I was first elected to Parliament.

This has been a very moving and informative debate, with so many excellent speeches from hon. Members. I particularly commend my predecessor as Public Health and Prevention Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for West Lancashire, for her fantastic work on the national cancer plan. It was all the better for being led by someone not just with lived experience, but who was actually in the middle of her cancer treatment at the same time. How she was able to do that—there is a huge workload in this brief—on top of her treatment, while at the same time driving progress on the 10-year health plan, the HIV action plan and the men’s health plan, is testament to how focused, tough and brilliant she is. I am not afraid to admit that following in her footsteps is a challenge. I am thrilled that she is with us today, and we all witnessed her brilliance at first hand in her speech.

I want to come to the substance of the issues that hon. Members have raised. If I run out of time, or if there is anything that I miss, I and my officials will write to hon. Members, so they should not think that I have just ignored what they said. It will be responded to in due course.

I want to start with data. The more data we collect, the more we can empower patients to make informed choices about their care, but it is not just about giving patients a clearer picture, important though that is. The Government made data one of the five big bets of our 10-year health plan—I think that is the right terminology—because the NHS is a data superpower. Just as coal was the fuel of the first industrial revolution, data will power the life sciences revolution, and we can use datasets to help scientists make further breakthroughs in cancer research.

Better data is also important for researchers to understand the number of cohorts they have to work with. It is important for NHS commissioners, who will have a clearer idea of patient demand. We cannot improve something that we cannot measure. In the words of Jo Taylor, the late founder of METUPUK,

“We are only counted when we are dead”,

and that is just unacceptable. As part of Jo’s legacy, we now have a specific commitment in our national cancer plan to begin collecting data for recurrent cancers, starting with metastatic breast cancer. I pay tribute once again to my hon. Friend the Member for West Lancashire for personally making sure that that commitment was there. Now that I have picked up her baton, as I said, I am determined to make sure we can make good on that promise.

The national disease registration service is working with NHS trusts to improve their reporting of non-primary cancers in the cancer outcomes and services dataset. I can update the House today that since the publication of the national cancer plan, the NDRS has made the collection and reporting of secondary breast cancer a key priority. It is co-ordinating with all partners, charities, teams of experts and trusts to properly collect data on secondary breast cancers at source. It is helping trusts to improve the way they collect data for things like disease progression, recurrence and metastatic spread.

In the meantime, the NDRS is teaming up with researchers at the University of Oxford to develop a new algorithm. This infers the numbers of metastatic disease by combining multiple routine datasets. In plain English, what it means is this: trusts routinely report all sorts of data to NHS England—imaging, chemo, radiotherapy. All that data comes into NHSE from different places across the country. It can then be linked to give us a good idea on numbers until we can get an even clearer picture through trust reporting.

We are already off to a good start because data was already starting to improve under this Government, even before the national cancer plan was published. Consecutive audits of metastatic breast cancer by the National Cancer Audit Collaborating Centre, or NATCAN, cover a greater number of people living with metastatic breast cancer. Data coverage of metastatic breast cancer is already improving, and the NDRS will also publish a baseline assessment of incidence and prevalence and the total number of people living with metastatic breast cancer by the end of this year. It will be the best assessment we have ever had.

Cancer patients deserve to have the finest minds in the country harnessing the data to make a difference. That is why we are also setting up a new health data research service by the end of this year. It will provide a secure single access point for researchers, including data relevant to cancer diagnosis, care and outcomes. That means that wherever they live in our country, whether Washington, Wokingham or Durham, scientists will be sitting on a treasure trove of data for their research. Our life sciences sector plan commits us to working with industry to accelerate growth in spending on innovative medicines. Just last year, a cutting edge oral targeted cancer therapy that helps to slow or stop cell growth was approved for treating advanced breast cancer on the NHS in England.

I turn to some specific points made by hon. Members. The hon. Members for Horsham (John Milne) and for North East Fife (Wendy Chamberlain) spoke about lobular breast cancer and the Lobular Moon Shot Project. I assure the House that Government funders are committed to continuing to work with researchers to support the development of fundable research proposals to drive a stronger understanding of the biology behind lobular breast cancer, as well as to develop effective treatments. In April, Lord Vallance and I, alongside the National Institute for Health and Medical Research Council representatives, met representatives of the Lobular Moon Shot Project. It was a very interesting meeting, I must say. Lord Vallance will also host a scientific roundtable on lobular breast cancer this month—one of the commitments we made at that meeting.

My hon. Friend the Member for West Lancashire spoke about the cancer clinical trials accelerator. I assure her that the Department, NHS England and the NIHR are working hard to develop and set up the accelerator to the timeline set out in the national cancer plan.

The hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) asked me once again about clinical trials at Queen’s University Belfast and what discussions Ministers had had with Northern Ireland Ministers. I commit to writing to him with further information on that matter. His plea at the end for more screening, more funding and more saving of lives did not fall on deaf ears for anyone in this Chamber, I am sure.

It has been a privilege to respond on behalf of the Government today. I have spent the best part of 20 to 30 years—21 years of them in this place—fighting alongside campaigners on this issue, along with many others. Now I am in government, they are all at the forefront of my mind. When it comes to cancer, colleagues are pushing at an open door with me. I will never forget my roots as chair of the all-party group and as a daughter-in-law of someone lost to secondary breast cancer at far too young an age. The hon. Member for Wokingham has a very personal connection to this campaign, and the all-party group could not be in better hands with him as its chair.

Let me end by thanking all hon. Members for keeping me on my toes. If I have not responded to any points made by the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Sleaford and North Hykeham (Dr Johnson), or by others, I commit to doing so in writing. I look forward to working with all Members in the months and years ahead as we take forward this important work.

Draft Food Supplements Purity Criteria (Magnesium L-threonate monohydrate) (England) Regulations 2026

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Wednesday 10th June 2026 General Committees

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Mrs Sharon Hodgson)]

I beg to move,

That the Committee has considered the draft Food Supplements Purity Criteria (Magnesium L-threonate monohydrate) (England) Regulations 2026.

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship this afternoon, Sir Edward. Magnesium L-threonate monohydrate—just to say it again—has recently been authorised as a novel food following a public consultation and safety assessment by the Food Standards Agency, which concluded that it is safe under the proposed conditions of use. The instrument sets the purity criteria—that is, the required safety and quality standards—for this form of the mineral magnesium to permit its use and sale in food supplements in England.

This statutory instrument is a routine and technical measure that ensures that food supplement regulations continue to operate effectively following the authorisation of novel substances for use in food supplements. The regulatory approach taken here is well established: where new substances are authorised, it is necessary to update the relevant legislation so that they can be used in practice and to ensure that clear and enforceable quality standards are in place.

Hon. Members will be aware that, under our existing legal framework, vitamins and minerals may be used in food supplements only if they are both listed in legislation and meet appropriate safety and quality standards. Magnesium itself is already a permitted mineral listed in legislation. However, different chemical forms of that mineral must also be specifically listed before they can be used.

A related statutory instrument, the Nutrition (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) (Amendment) Regulations 2026, already laid under the negative procedure, adds this substance to the list of permitted forms of magnesium. However, for food supplements containing this substance to be lawfully sold, purity criteria must also be established, and an SI following the affirmative procedure is required to set the purity criteria for this substance in legislation. That is the sole purpose of the regulations before this Committee today. The criteria specified in this instrument reflect the scientific specification assessed by the Food Standards Agency and ensure that, where this substance is used, it is manufactured and marketed to a consistent and safe standard.

Food law is a devolved matter and this instrument applies in England only. Wales and Scotland have made equivalent amendments to their food supplement regulations, and Northern Ireland applies the existing European Union equivalent regulations, as required by the Windsor framework. It is important to emphasise that this measure is enabling, not mandatory; it does not require any business to use this ingredient or to change their products.

The use of this new optional substance initially affects only the applicant who requested this authorisation, who benefits first from a five-year exclusive use period. During this period, only the applicant may use and sell magnesium L-threonate monohydrate as a form of magnesium, unless another business obtains authorisation based on its own data or with the applicant’s permission. In the longer term, other businesses will benefit from the authorisation of this substance, supporting choice and product innovation while maintaining robust safety standards.

Food supplement legislation is in scope of the UK-EU sanitary and phytosanitary—or SPS—agreement, which will involve alignment with EU legislation in this area. In this case, this substance has already been authorised for use in the EU, so we expect no change in practice for businesses when alignment takes place. We therefore consider it appropriate to proceed now, following the Food Standards Agency’s safety assessment, to allow the substance to be used in Great Britain as soon as possible.

In summary, the regulations fulfil our requirements to update food supplement regulations where new substances have been authorised for use in food supplements and we continue to uphold high standards of safety and quality for consumers. I commend the draft regulations to the Committee.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mrs Hodgson]

I thank all Members for coming along and supporting the important measures before us today. I thank the hon. Member for Sleaford and North Hykeham for her questions. I have made a note of them, and I am sure my official has as well. I have a huge binder full of information here, in which I could attempt to find the right answer for the hon. Lady—but, if she does not mind, I will commit to write to her on those very important points. I agree with her that it does sound like a possible wonder supplement; perhaps we should all rush out and buy some, especially if it helps with sleep. I know we could all do with a bit more of that. Specifically, the dosing plan, how often the purity will be tested and whether it does what it says on the tin are very important questions, so I will commit to write to her.

As I said in my opening remarks, this instrument is a routine technical measure to update food supplement regulations following the authorisation of magnesium L-threonate monohydrate as a novel ingredient to ensure the appropriate purity criteria are in place so that it can be used and sold lawfully in food supplements in England. It does not place new burdens on businesses, but ensures that any use of the substance meets clear and consistent safety and quality standards, which I think is what the hon. Lady was driving at in her questions. I invite the Committee to support these draft regulations, and I commend them to the Committee today.

Question put and agreed to.

Oral Answers to Questions

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Tuesday 9th June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Mr Luke Charters (York Outer) (Lab)]

12. What steps his Department is taking to improve the provision of NHS health visitors.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Mrs Sharon Hodgson)]

Health visitors play a vital role in supporting babies, children and families. Under the previous Government, the number of health visitors fell significantly, which is why this Government have taken action. The upcoming professional strategy for nursing and midwifery will set out a bold direction of travel to strengthen health visiting across England. We have already made improvements with all post-birth health and development reviews now completed for over 80% of children nationally, which is the highest level since recording began.

[Mr Charters]

I recently gave evidence to Baroness Amos’s national maternity inquiry, sharing the trauma that my wife and I endured. Even as she carried her own burden after the birth, she was my rock, but the NHS was not. I was invisible. No one asked about me and I was left to carry it alone for months. Will the Minister please ensure that health visitors recognise dads and other non-birthing partners, check in on their mental health, and help them to access support so that no more dads are forgotten when families need them the most?

[Mrs Hodgson]

I thank my hon. Friend for being so brave and willing to share his and his wife’s birth trauma, and to talk about the lack of support afterwards, not just with Baroness Amos and her review but with the House today. I know personally how hard it is to do that, but I also know the huge difference it can make to Government policy. I am happy to commit to him today that the Government will absolutely look closely at all the findings in Baroness Amos’s review, and work with the national maternity taskforce to translate the recommendations into action. I am also pleased to confirm that we have recently updated our national health visiting guidance to include a high impact area on family mental health, with a clear focus on supporting both mothers and fathers.

[Freddie van Mierlo (Henley and Thame) (LD)]

It is not just the number of health visitors that needs to be improved. Women report to me that they have skipped appointments due to negative experiences with health visitors, especially around breastfeeding. Will the Minister commit to improving the training of health visitors, so that women receive the best quality care?

[Mrs Hodgson]

Yes, I will. We are busy working on the 10-year workforce plan. The training of all the NHS workforce, including health visitors, is a big part of that. In my new position as public health and prevention Minister, I am particularly interested in the work of health visitors, especially with regard to supporting rates of breastfeeding. The hon. Gentleman will be aware that the results of the breastfeeding survey were released last week and they showed substantial improvement.

[Lisa Smart (Hazel Grove) (LD)]

13. What assessment he has made of the adequacy of the dental recruitment incentive scheme.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mary Glindon (Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend) (Lab)]

T3. At the age of six, Ellis Lake was diagnosed with metachromatic leukodystrophy, which is treatable if diagnosed early. His parents Tracy and Luke are campaigning for newborn screening for the disease. The UK National Screening Committee did not recommend screening in its last review of the condition, but it did outline that it was gathering more evidence. Will the Minister look at how the process can be expedited?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Mrs Sharon Hodgson)]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising that very important matter. My sympathy is with the Lake family, and I commend them for their advocacy on this issue. I am acutely aware of the matter, having met the hon. Member for Upper Bann (Carla Lockhart) and her constituents about this issue last week, in a very moving meeting. I assure my hon. Friend that the Department is working with partners to see whether it is possible to set up a multi-condition evaluation, so that not only MLD but other rare conditions can be assessed alongside the existing screening programmes.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lloyd Hatton (South Dorset) (Lab)]

T8. I recently held a health roundtable in Purbeck and heard volunteers from Parkinson’s UK make it clear that more needs to be done so that all those living with the illness receive the robust support they need. There was particular concern that a shift away from routine check-ups could mean that many will not regularly see an experienced practitioner. Will the Minister work with me to ensure that the voices of people living with Parkinson’s are listened to and their concerns acted upon when any changes are made to the care they receive?

[Mrs Hodgson]

People with Parkinson’s disease should receive support tailored to their individual needs, as symptoms and progression vary. The NHS provides specialist multidisciplinary NHS care informed by guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and improvement programmes such as Getting It Right First Time. People with Parkinson’s will benefit from our wider work to strengthen community services, reduce waiting times and improve co-ordinated, person-centred care closer to home. I assure my hon. Friend that the Department will continue to meet regularly with Parkinson’s UK to ensure that their voices are heard.

[Mr Will Forster (Woking) (LD)]

T6. Byfleet, in my constituency, lost its doctor’s surgery in 2005, leaving residents having to struggle via the A245 to access basic health facilities, which are set to get busier due to a likely housing development. Will the Minister agree to meet me to ensure that we can bring health facilities back to Byfleet?

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[Gill Furniss (Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough) (Lab)]

Last year I had the opportunity to witness a transcatheter aortic valve implantation procedure, which is a groundbreaking procedure for people who require valve changes. What I saw was quite incredible, and I recommend that all hon. Members go and see the procedure in St Thomas’ hospital. The patient, who was 82, had been bedbound for weeks, but after that 20-minute surgery they were fit enough to be discharged later that day and to look after themselves. That has a massive impact, not just on the patient’s life but for our NHS and the wider economy, as illustrated by Heart Valve Voice’s optimal pathway report. What steps is the Department taking to ensure that NHS systems identify patients and treat them?

[Mrs Hodgson]

I am aware of my hon. Friend’s significant work in this policy area, and she is absolutely right about the huge potential of TAVIs. Rising national TAVI activity and improved “Getting it right first time” pathways are part of our approach to reduce health inequalities and support more timely, equitable care. Through that work, the Government are committed to strengthening consistency in the diagnosis and treatment of heart valve disease, building on progress already made.

[Dr Al Pinkerton (Surrey Heath) (LD)]

The relocation of Frimley Park hospital in my constituency is a £1.8 billion project, but none of the costs of the essential infrastructure to enable the new site to go ahead have been costed or budgeted for. The chief executives of the hospital simply have said that those costs will have to come from the new hospital programme contingency fund. Does the Secretary of State agree that that is no way to start a project of such size, scale and significance, and will he meet me to address those concerns?

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[Kirsteen Sullivan (Bathgate and Linlithgow) (Lab/Co-op)]

On Thursday I will chair the all-party parliamentary group on endometriosis’s first evidence session of our inquiry into endometriosis in the workplace. We will look at the experiences of women living with the condition and at the lack of timely treatment for chronic symptoms and how this impacts them in the workplace. Will the Secretary of State commit to reviewing our recommendations, once they are published later this year?

[Mrs Hodgson]

I commend my hon. Friend for her great work and that of the APPG in highlighting the importance of endometriosis and the impact it can have. We would be delighted to continue our close engagement with her and the APPG on this topic. We will consider the APPG’s findings carefully when they are published, as part of our ongoing work to improve diagnosis, treatment and support for women with endometriosis.

[Helen Maguire (Epsom and Ewell) (LD)]

Epsom and St Helier hospitals need urgent funding now, not just patchwork repairs. In 2024, 600 operations were cancelled due to ventilation issues and the situation is only going to get worse, so will the Minister address the backlog of hospital repairs now to ensure that patients and staff have safe and modern facilities in Epsom and Saint Helier hospitals?

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[Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con)]

May I have a meeting to discuss my parents, carers and babies Bill, which affords support to the Best Start family hubs and healthy babies programme?

[Mrs Hodgson]

We know that the earliest stages of a child’s life are critical for their development, and the Government are committed to supporting families to give babies the best start in life. We are investing over £900 million in the Best Start family hubs and healthy babies programme to create an integrated, accessible system of support for families. I particularly look forward to considering the merits of the private Member’s Bill that the right hon. Gentleman will present to Parliament, and I do indeed look forward to meeting him to discuss that further.

[Dr Rupa Huq (Ealing Central and Acton) (Lab)]

There are half a million coeliac sufferers in the UK, but there is little understanding of the condition, which is massively underdiagnosed. Can I invite everyone here—even you, Mr Speaker—to the drop-in session that I am doing on Tuesday 16 June with the campaign? In particular, can the campaign have a follow-up meeting with the Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, my hon. Friend the Member for Washington and Gateshead South (Mrs Hodgson), as she has been a long-standing advocate for the campaign and gets it?

Prostate Cancer Screening

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Tuesday 2nd June 2026 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Mrs Sharon Hodgson)]

I would like to inform the House that the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has accepted the recommendation of the UK National Screening Committee to introduce England’s first targeted prostate cancer screening programme. This decision has been taken after considering the evidence presented by both the UK NSC and patient advocate groups.

Men with a known BRCA2 gene variant and a relevant family history will be offered PSA (prostate-specific antigen) screening every two years between the ages of 45 and 61. The programme is expected to begin roll-out in 2027 and will use an IT call and recall system that will systematically invite eligible men for tests. Those who have previously been advised that they can get an annual PSA test will still be able to access them through their GP.

This is an important step forward, but we know that our accepting this recommendation means that there will be groups and individuals who will be disappointed that we are not going further. However, the evidence does not yet support a wider screening programme. Screening must do more good than harm, and given current tests and treatments, that threshold has not been met. Screening all men could lead to unnecessary treatment that does more harm than good—including incontinence and erectile dysfunction.

That is why, alongside introducing targeted screening, the Government are taking decisive action to strengthen the evidence base and improve outcomes for men at highest risk, and to improve effective diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer.

We are announcing a major package of investment of over £20 million to expand research and improve treatment. This includes an increased financial commitment of up to an additional £18 million to the TRANSFORM trial, which is working to address the evidence gaps identified by the UK NSC. As a result of this investment, and with the help of grant-funded investment at community level, all eligible black men—UK residents between 45 and 74 years who have not had a PSA test or prostate MRI scan in the last five years—will be invited to take part in stage 2 of the trial. This investment will help to address long-standing inequalities in risk and outcomes.

The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, my right hon. Friend the Member for Ealing North (James Murray), will soon be hosting a roundtable alongside the Deputy Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tottenham (Mr Lammy), with representatives of local community organisations, supported by Prostate Cancer UK and the National Institute of Health and Care Research, to hear directly from community organisations about how we should boost engagement and encourage black men to be a part of this vital research, which will find the best screening programme. Furthermore, we are investing up to £2.8 million in focal therapy, a minimally invasive prostate cancer treatment. This will strengthen existing national provision, and reduce potential harms from treatment and support delivery of the TRANSFORM trial.

The Government have also taken significant steps to improve access to the most effective treatments for men with prostate cancer. Earlier this year, the NHS expanded access to the drug abiraterone for earlier-stage prostate cancer, representing a substantial improvement in outcomes for thousands of families affected by prostate cancer.

We recognise that the change in policy will mean that the public may seek answers from their GP or health professionals. Men who are not eligible for the new screening programme but have concerns should continue to ask their GP for advice on the basis of their individual position and risk factors. In order to support this engagement, we are updating the guidance both to GPs and to the public in line with the new recommendation to make it clearer to follow.

It is important that GPs are supported to make more informed clinical judgements when approached for a PSA test by men who do not have symptoms, but who are concerned about suspected family history. My officials are working with Cancer Research UK to move work on this forwards.

We will keep the evidence under close review, and the UK NSC’s model maintained, resourced and regularly updated as new evidence becomes available, so that we are ready to go further as soon as the science supports it.

With this package of measures, we are expanding research, widening treatment options, and tackling inequalities in prostate cancer care. The Secretary of State and I would like to take this opportunity to thank the UK National Screening Committee for continuing to provide invaluable expert advice on screening programmes, and everyone who participated in the consultation, including charities and patient groups. Finally, we would like to pay tribute to all those who work to deliver high-quality screening across the country, saving lives every day.

[HCWS80]

Hantavirus Outbreak Response: Regulatory Changes

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Tuesday 19th May 2026 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Mrs Sharon Hodgson)]

On 10 May, the UK Government safely returned all remaining British nationals on board the MV Hondius. With some passengers having returned to England earlier than this, and with the arrival for monitoring of a number of individuals from UK Overseas territories who had contact with passengers, I would like to inform the House that, as of Monday 18 May 2026, the following amendments have been laid and come into force:

The Health Protection (Notification) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 amend the Health Protection (Notification) Regulations 2010 to include hantavirus disease, including hantavirus pulmonary or cardiopulmonary syndrome and haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome as a notifiable disease in schedule 1 (“Hanta virus” is already included within the list of causative agents in schedule 2).

The National Health Service (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 2015 have been amended to include hantavirus in schedule 1. They have also been amended to exempt overseas visitors from NHS charging for schedule 1 diseases, where the person was brought to the UK in agreement with the UK Government for treatment or quarantine for a schedule 1 disease.

The public health assessment remains that the risk to the public is very low. I would like to pay tribute to the staff from across the health system, particularly regional health protection teams, for their ongoing efforts to support the hantavirus response and protect the public’s health. The amendments that came into force yesterday will support the UK Health Security Agency and our health partners to swiftly identify, treat and control the disease, and reduce potential financial barriers to overseas visitors in England who require NHS-funded secondary care services in relation to hantavirus.

Health Protection (Notification) Regulations 2010

As of 6 pm on 18 May 2026, hantavirus disease—including hantavirus pulmonary or cardiopulmonary syndrome and haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome—is a notifiable disease and there is now an explicit legal duty on doctors in England to notify the proper officer of the relevant local authority if they see a patient who they suspect of having hantavirus disease. While we believe cases have been reliably notified to date, this amendment puts beyond doubt the legal obligation of doctors to report cases of suspected hantavirus disease. Placing a legal duty on doctors to report suspected hantavirus disease and provide the relevant patient information—as set out in the regulations—will strengthen our understanding of the virus and its transmission within the England and, if required, support the implementation of timely infection prevention and control measures.

There is already a legal duty on laboratories to notify the UKHSA if they identify hantavirus when they test a human sample in England, as “Hanta virus” is already included within the list of notifiable causative agents at schedule 2 of the regulations.

National Health Service (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 2015 (“the charging regulations”)

NHS charging regulations require providers of NHS-funded secondary care to make charges to people not ordinarily resident in the UK—overseas visitors—except where an exemption category applies.

We acted swiftly, and as of 6 pm on 18 May 2026, we ensured that, should an overseas visitor in England need NHS-funded secondary care services in respect of hantavirus disease, hantavirus pulmonary or cardiopulmonary syndrome and haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome, they will not be charged. Providing such services without charge removes a potential financial barrier to overseas visitors presenting for NHS-funded secondary care, therefore ensuring that the risk to the public’s health from infected visitors is minimised. This brings hantavirus disease into line with most other infectious diseases, such as tuberculosis and covid-19.

The inclusion of hantavirus disease in schedule 1 of the charging regulations means that overseas visitors will not be charged for the diagnosis and treatment of hantavirus disease. We have also amended the charging regulations so that any charges already incurred for hantavirus disease since 1 May 2026 must be cancelled or, if paid, must be refunded.

We have also amended the charging regulations so that diagnosis and treatment for a disease in schedule 1 will remain exempt from charging, provided that the overseas visitor travelled to the UK by means of transport that has been agreed with, or funded by, the Secretary of State for supported repatriation or travel to the UK for the purposes of quarantine. This amendment will apply to all schedule 1 diseases.

[HCWS43]

Favipiravir: Contingent Liability

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Monday 18th May 2026 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Mrs Sharon Hodgson)]

The UK Health Security Agency is receiving a supply of doses of the antiviral medicine favipiravir from the Government of Japan to support the United Kingdom’s preparedness and response to hantavirus.

Favipiravir is not currently licensed for use in the United Kingdom. In line with standard international practice for the provision of medical countermeasures of this nature, the Government of Japan and the supplier have requested that the United Kingdom provides an indemnity in respect of liabilities that may arise from the use of the product.

This indemnity constitutes a contingent liability. The Government have concluded that it represents an appropriate and proportionate arrangement to secure access to a clinically recommended countermeasure, supporting the Government’s ability to respond to the current outbreak and protect the public’s health.

The liability is unquantifiable at this time and is expected to be called upon only in highly unlikely circumstances.

In the normal course of events, a departmental minute would be laid before Parliament for 14 sitting days prior to the indemnity being entered into, in accordance with “Managing Public Money”. Due to the urgent need to secure supply and support the UK’s response to the current hantavirus outbreak, this has not been possible. The departmental minute has been laid before Parliament today. The Department has written to the Public Accounts Committee and Health and Social Care Select Committee to notify them that Parliament could not be informed in advance of making this commitment. Further correspondence will be provided to the Committees.

[HCWS30]

Hantavirus: Public Health Response

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Thursday 14th May 2026 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Mrs Sharon Hodgson)]

I am updating the House on the outbreak of hantavirus onboard the Dutch cruise ship the MV Hondius, and the action the UK has taken to support British nationals and protect public health.

First, I wish to express our condolences to the families and friends of the three people who have sadly died. I also pay tribute to the passengers and crew who have faced the most difficult of circumstances and showed remarkable resilience.

The UK’s response to this complex incident is being led by the UK Health Security Agency working closely with the World Health Organisation, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the Department of Health and Social Care, the Home Office, the Ministry for Housing Communities and Local Government, the Ministry of Defence, the UK devolved Governments and international partners. Collectively, they are doing everything possible to protect the safety and wellbeing of British nationals, and to provide reassurance to UK citizens.

I am grateful too for the strong collaboration received from our international counterparts in Spain, the Netherlands, EU and WHO.

Current picture

As of 9 am, 14 May 2026, the WHO has reported eleven cases of Hantavirus globally, nine of which are confirmed. Three of these individuals were repatriated from the Hondius to Spain, France and the US. Three cases are British nationals—one on Tristan de Cunha, one in Johannesburg and one in the Netherlands. There have been three deaths related to this incident. No British nationals have died.

Timeline

The MV Hondius, a Dutch-flagged vessel operated by a Dutch company, sailed from Argentina and visited the UK overseas territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha.

The MV Hondius arrived in Tenerife on 10 May, where support was co-ordinated by Spain and the WHO. We are grateful to the Spanish Government and the people of the Canary Islands for facilitating the safe transfer of passengers. From Tenerife, the passengers were transported to the airport for chartered flights to their home countries.

On arrival in the UK, Hondius passengers were transferred to an isolation facility at Arrowe Park hospital on the Wirral where they received clinical assessments and testing. Arrowe Park was selected on the basis that it has the required facilities including a dedicated block, self-contained units and access to outside space, with proximity to infectious disease units and to hospital support in addition to proximity to Manchester Airport.

Isolation

High-risk contacts have been asked to isolate for up to 45 days, with regular testing and ongoing care provided by UKHSA and NHS teams. This includes 20 British nationals, one UK resident German national and one Japanese citizen returning from Tenerife, and seven British nationals who disembarked the ship at Saint Helena on 24 April. Of those seven, six are isolating in the UK and UKOTs and one person is isolating outside the UK. UKHSA and the NHS is also continuing to support the isolation—in Arrowe Park and individuals’ own homes where it is safe to do so—of individuals who are considered high-risk contacts from the ship or aircraft where cases are known to have been onboard. UKHSA is supporting UKOTs CMOs on their advice for high-risk contacts in UKOTs.

Public health specialists from UKHSA and infectious diseases specialists from the NHS have assessed whether passengers are able to safely isolate at home or whether an alternative suitable location will be arranged.

Where it is safe and possible, they have been provided with tailored support to help them now isolate at home. They will be closely monitored and supported by health protection teams, with daily contact throughout their isolation period.

UKHSA has notified local authority directors of public health and individual MPs where a person had been requested to isolate in their constituency and will continue to do so when people leave Arrowe Park to complete their isolation period in their homes.

UK overseas territories

UKHSA will also support 9 people from the UK overseas territories of Saint Helena and Ascension Island who have been offered the choice of completing their self-isolation in the UK in order to be closer to the NHS specialist infectious diseases units for clinical care if they develop symptoms This is to ensure they can be provided with the best possible support from England’s NHS high consequence infectious disease network should they become unwell. This is precautionary to support the individuals and communities in the UK overseas territories: We are also supporting Ascension Island where one contact has developed symptoms.

We are also aware of an individual who disembarked the MV Hondius at Saint Helena and subsequently travelled to UK overseas territory of the Pitcairn Islands. While this individual is not symptomatic, we are taking a precautionary approach and working with relevant consular and health authorities to explore options for this individual’s repatriation while ensuring appropriate mitigation procedures while on island.

UKHSA continues to work closely with public health teams in the UK overseas territories to identify and support the management of individuals who may have had high-risk contact with cases. This includes putting in place established protocols around contact tracing and isolation measures where necessary. The risk to the general public remains very low in all UK overseas territories.

The FCDO and other UK Government Departments and agencies are working closely to support the Governments of the UK overseas territories visited by the MV Hondius to get medical support to the affected overseas territories. The MOD has worked with UKHSA to provide vital diagnostic supplies, including PCR tests, which were delivered to Ascension Island via a military plane on 7 May. An MOD team is currently also supporting the provision of medical services on Ascension.

Tests, supplies and MOD and UKHSA personnel have also been sent to Saint Helena.

Additionally, on 9 May, an army specialist team of six paratroopers and two military clinicians parachuted on to Tristan da Cunha from an RAF transport aircraft to deliver critical essential oxygen supplies and additional medical support. This extraordinary operation reflects our unwavering commitment to the people of our overseas territories and to British nationals, wherever they are.

The overseas territory Governments have put out public advice with information on the latest situation and support available for anyone who came into contact with passengers from the ship.

Hantavirus

Hantaviruses are a group of viruses carried by rodents and transmitted through exposure to their urine, droppings, or saliva. They can cause a range of illness, from mild, flu-like symptoms to severe respiratory disease. Infection most commonly occurs through inhalation of airborne particles contaminated with rodent excreta and may also occur via broken skin or the eyes, or, very rarely, through rodent bites. In the strains where person-to-person transmission has been observed, it is associated with very close contact.

The strain of virus associated with this outbreak is Andes Hantavirus. This hantavirus is typically associated with rodent species found in South America that are not present in the UK, and it has never been detected in the UK rodent population.

Although this incident brings into sharp relief the dangers of this infectious disease, it is important to note that the UKHSA has been clear throughout that the risk to the British public is very low.

Information to keep the public updated has been published on: https://ukhsa.blog.gov.uk/2026/05/12/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-hantavirus-outbreak-linked-to-the-dutch-cruise-ship/

[HCWS1573]

Osteoporosis and Bone Health

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Wednesday 22nd April 2026 Westminster Hall

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Mrs Sharon Hodgson)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Lewell. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Dudley (Sonia Kumar) for securing this important debate. She continues to work as a physiotherapist alongside her role as a serving MP, so she brings a wealth of valuable professional clinical experience and knowledge to this debate. I would be very happy to meet her afterwards to discuss her three recommendations.

I also thank her for her as the chair of the APPG on osteoporosis and bone health. As an MP for 21 years, I have done lots of work on APPGs, and I am—as I know our Chair today is—a big supporter of all APPGs. The work they do is so important and can really make changes to policy. My hon. Friend’s APPG does important work in raising awareness of osteoporosis, advocating for improvements to the care that patients receive, and promoting behavioural and system changes that are designed to strengthen bones and prevent osteoporosis.

Osteoporosis is estimated to affect more than 3 million people in the UK, and each year over half a million patients present to hospitals with fragility fractures. It is important that we acknowledge the significant impact that osteoporosis can have on individuals and their loved ones. It can seriously impact every aspect of a person’s life, as we have heard, and has a significant impact on the NHS and the wider economy. We hear too often—as we have today—of patients experiencing painful fractures that could have been prevented, of patients living in fear of having further fractures, and the impact that that has on their independence, wellbeing and quality of life. We recognise the importance of bone health and the benefits that early identification of people at risk of osteoporosis and the prevention of fragility fractures can bring.

The 10-year health plan sets out a vision for a health and care system that delivers more personalised, integrated and proactive care for people with long-term and complex conditions, including osteoporosis and other musculoskeletal conditions. More tests and scans delivered in the community, better joined-up working between services and greater use of technology will all support people in the management of osteoporosis. The neighbourhood health service, supported by the neighbourhood health framework that we published last month, will ensure that people can better access care that is joined up, personalised and designed to proactively meet their needs. Initiatives such as Diagnosis Connect will also directly refer patients to specialist charities at the point of diagnosis for personalised advice, information, guidance and support.

Resources are already in place to help support healthcare professionals in the early diagnosis of osteoporosis, such as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence clinical knowledge summary on osteoporosis and the prevention of fragility fractures. The Royal College of General Practitioners also has an e-learning module for GPs on the diagnosis and management of osteoporosis, developed in collaboration with the Royal Osteoporosis Society—I am sure that my hon. Friend the Member for Dudley was telling me that she was the chair or the president of the society.

[Sonia Kumar]

indicated dissent.

[Mrs Hodgson]

It must have been another body—I am giving her jobs that she has never had.

That e-module is designed to support the early diagnosis of osteoporosis by highlighting which groups are at higher risk of osteoporosis and fragility fractures.

Progress is being made on increasing early diagnosis and management of osteoporosis. Last year, more than 16,000 extra bone density—or DEXA—scans were delivered compared with the previous year, but we recognise there is still much more we can do. That is why on 1 March, the Government announced funding for 20 new DEXA scanners across England, supported by £2.4 million of investment. Tens of thousands of patients will benefit from faster access to bone scans as a result, and it will help ensure that people with bone conditions, such as osteoporosis, get diagnosed earlier.

Fracture liaison services can play a vital role in reducing the risk of refracture, improving quality of life and increasing years lived in good health, which is what we all want to see. The Government and NHS England support the clinical case for services that help prevent fragility fractures and support the patients who sustain them. We are committed to rolling out fracture liaison services to every part of the country by 2030. Integrated care boards remain well placed to make decisions according to local need. The renewed women’s health strategy published last week sets an expectation that ICBs prioritise community-based models when commissioning new fracture prevention services.

However, we need to be honest about the scale of the action needed, the challenges faced across the health and care system, and that change will not be possible overnight. Musculoskeletal community services have the longest waiting lists of all adult community services in England. We know that patients, including those with osteoporosis, are waiting too long for care and treatment, and that needs to change.

To support people with MSK conditions, such as osteoporosis, to access services when they need them, we are delivering the “Getting it right first time” MSK community delivery programme, which is working to transform MSK community services, reduce MSK community waiting times, improve data and metrics, and implement referral pathways to wider support services. As part of a major transformation of the NHS under the 10-year health plan, patients with MSK conditions, such as osteoporosis, will also soon be able to bypass their GPs and directly access community services, including physiotherapy, pain management and orthopaedics, in the NHS app.

The landmark change will deliver faster treatment for the flare-up of existing conditions, while enabling GPs to focus on more complex cases, reducing pressure on hospitals and freeing up GP practices. As we have heard, osteoporosis affects around one in three women, compared with one in five men. We know that women are at greater risk of osteoporosis due to the decrease in oestrogen production at the menopause, which accelerates bone loss.

Since 2022, two new drugs have been recommended by NICE for the treatment of osteoporosis in post-menopausal women. I was so glad to hear the intervention from my hon. Friend the Member for North Warwickshire and Bedworth (Rachel Taylor), who said she had taken some of those new medications. They help to strengthen bones and prevent bone loss, reducing the risk of fractures. The renewed women’s health strategy published last week sets out our ambition to support healthy ageing, maintain independence and improve quality of life for women, while also reducing avoidable pressure on hospital services.

Turning to work and health, the Government are committed to supporting disabled people and those with health conditions, including MSK conditions such as osteoporosis, with their employment journey. We therefore have a range of specialist initiatives to support individuals to stay in work and get back to work. We are joining up health and employment support around the individual through the WorkWell programme, MSK hubs, the MSK community delivery programme, and the individual placement and support in primary care initiative. Measures also include support from work coaches and disability employment advisers in jobcentres, and access to work grants.

We also recognise the benefits of physical activity in improving bone strength and reducing the risk of fractures. We are exploring ways to expand access to MSK physical activity hubs in the community, enabling the delivery of evidence-based physical activity interventions for individuals with MSK conditions. By aligning with employment support at local level, this project will seek to improve both health and work outcomes for people with MSK conditions, such as osteoporosis, while prioritising those experiencing unmet MSK health needs and living in areas of deprivation, with the aim of addressing health inequalities.

I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Dudley again for securing this important debate and all the work she does in this area, and I thank other hon. Members for being present and for raising insightful points during the debate. I hope hon. Members are reassured by some of the measures I have outlined. I recognise that we must go further, but I reaffirm the Government’s commitment to support the millions of people in the UK who are living with osteoporosis to ensure that they get the support they need, including improved diagnosis and management. I look forward to meeting with my hon. Friend.

Question put and agreed to.

Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy

Sharon Hodgson Excerpts

Wednesday 22nd April 2026 Commons Chamber

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Mrs Sharon Hodgson)]

I thank the hon. Member for Didcot and Wantage (Olly Glover) for securing this important debate. At the outset, I will say that I am happy to meet him to discuss all the action points he raised at the end of his speech—and as for where that meeting will take place, we can discuss that.

Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy, or SUDEP for short, is a vitally important issue for those directly and tragically affected, and for many Members. We must learn lessons when deaths occur and make the changes needed. We must also ensure timely access to the right specialist support for people with epilepsy. We must tackle long waits for neurology appointments, and continue to build the evidence base, so that innovative treatments, such as medicinal cannabis, where clinically appropriate, are available in a safe and consistent way. I will set out the actions that we are taking with the NHS and partners to reduce risks as well as improve outcomes for people living with epilepsy.

First, there is a statutory duty for organisations to respond to a prevention of future deaths report issued by a coroner when their investigation identifies circumstances that create a risk of future deaths. That provides a clear mechanism for organisations to set out the actions that they will take to address those risks. Alongside the PFD process, it is essential that the NHS continues to strengthen how it identifies and acts to mitigate risk in day-to-day epilepsy care. That is why, when it comes to epilepsy, we are working with the NHS and partners to embed structured risk assessments and consistent risk communication in routine practice, so that known risk factors are identified early, addressed where possible, and discussed openly with patients and families, in line with best practice.

Cutting waiting lists, including for neurology services, is a key priority for this Government. We have committed to achieving the NHS constitutional standard, which is that 92% of patients should wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to treatment, by March 2029. We have already delivered 5.2 million additional elective appointments in our first year in government. Waiting lists overall are coming down, but we recognise that they remain too high, with neurology remaining a particularly challenged specialty.

For patients with epilepsy, timely access to specialist advice, supported by clear referral routes and co-ordinated care across primary care, community services and hospitals, is critical to good outcomes. Nationally, NHS England’s neurology transformation programme developed a model of integrated care to support integrated care boards in delivering the right service at the right time to patients, as close to home as possible.

For those with refractory epilepsy who need highly specialised input, NHS England’s updated service specification for specialised adult neurology services is clear that specialised neurology centres must include services for the assessment and management of refractory epilepsy.

Progress is being made on the treatment backlog. Between February 2025 and February 2026, the number of incomplete neurology pathways reduced by over 10,000, the average waiting time reduced from 16.5 weeks to 15 weeks, and the proportion of patients seen within 18 weeks increased to 57.9%. We will continue to work with the NHS to improve access and reduce delays for patients, including those with epilepsy, and families.

Research is central to improving outcomes for people with epilepsy. The Department funds research into epilepsy through the National Institute for Health and Care Research—the NIHR—and, in the five years from April 2020 to March 2025, we committed almost £19 million to 15 epilepsy research projects. The NIHR welcomes applications on all topics, including epilepsy.

I fully understand why patients and families continue to press for safe and equitable access to medical cannabis, particularly for children with drug-resistant epilepsy. There is one licensed cannabis-based medicine, Epidyolex, that is available for prescribing on the NHS, where clinically appropriate, following clear evidence of its safety and clinical and cost-effectiveness. Most cannabis-based medicines that patients are seeking are unlicensed and have not been assessed for their safety, quality or effectiveness. Until the evidence base improves, the NHS will not routinely fund them, and clinicians will rightly be cautious about prescribing. That is why, through NIHR and NHS England, the Government are investing over £9 million in clinical trials of cannabis-based medicines for drug-resistant epilepsy, to strengthen the evidence and support consistent, safe decision making.

We know that around 30% of people with epilepsy have a learning disability, as my hon. Friend the Member for Lichfield (Dave Robertson) set out, and that the risk of SUDEP is higher for those with a learning disability. The most recent “learning from lives and deaths” report found that epilepsy was one of the most common underlying causes of death for people with a learning disability between 2021 and 2023. That highlights how crucial it is that information and support for patients with epilepsy who have a learning disability is tailored to their individual needs.

[Dave Robertson]

I thank the Minister for delineating everything that the Government are doing to support people with epilepsy. I was fortunate enough to secure an Adjournment debate a couple of months ago to talk about the Clive Treacey safety checklist. The Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, my hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow South West (Dr Ahmed), said at the Dispatch Box that he expects every NHS trust to follow that checklist. Does she agree with him, and will she send the message that all trusts must follow that checklist?

[Mrs Hodgson]

I welcome the development of the Clive Treacey safety checklist. It is an important part of Clive’s legacy, notwithstanding the comments that my hon. Friend made about his legacy being much wider than that. We would encourage commissioners and service providers to use the checklist and its accompanying guidance as a key tool when designing services for their local populations, and to ensure that steps outlined in the checklist are followed whenever a patient experiences a significant change in their care. We hope that is being rolled out, followed and used.

At the national level, there are a number of programmes and tools supporting safer, more consistent epilepsy care. NICE guidance recommends that people with a learning disability have monitoring reviews at least annually, and information should be tailored and adapted. They should have access to specialist care and co-ordinated, multidisciplinary support. NICE is clear that where young people are transitioning into adult services, planning should begin early. While NICE guidance is not mandatory, the Government expect commissioners and service providers to take it fully into account when making decisions on how best to meet the needs of their local communities.

NHS England’s RightCare programme has developed an epilepsy toolkit to support commissioners and clinicians in improving epilepsy care and reducing preventable deaths. The toolkit makes structured risk assessment and risk reduction, and proactive conversations about SUDEP, a core part of guidance, and it signposts practical resources, such as the SUDEP and seizure safety checklist, to support consistent risk communication in line with NICE guidance.

Health Education England, which is now part of NHS England, has developed an epilepsy programme in collaboration with SUDEP Action. That includes evidence-based training modules, delivered through the NHS England e-learning for healthcare platform, covering practical diagnosis and management, medication adherence and SUDEP risk factors. Alongside that, Government-supported frameworks, including the national bundle of care for children and young people with epilepsy, are helping to drive more equitable access to timely intervention and rehabilitation.

In closing, I thank the hon. Member for Didcot and Wantage for securing this very important debate; it is great to see it so well attended. I thank all hon. Members who took part in it and made interventions, including my hon. Friend the Member for Bracknell (Peter Swallow), the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon), and my hon. Friends the Members for Stroud (Dr Opher), for Lichfield, and for Southgate and Wood Green (Bambos Charalambous). They made a number of very important points, and if I need to follow up on any of them with colleagues in other Departments or in my Department, I definitely will.

I also thank those with lived experience of epilepsy, and the families who have lost loved ones to SUDEP. Their courage in speaking out continues to drive change through the work that we do in this place. We will continue to work with partners across the health system to support people with epilepsy and, ultimately, reduce deaths from epilepsy.

Question put and agreed to.