Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has had discussions with the Northern Ireland Department of Health on the (a) operation of the Foundation Programme allocation process and (b) its potential impact on applicants in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The UK Foundation Programme Office (UKFPO) manages the national application process for the UK Foundation Programme, issues guidance on foundation training, and promotes the consistent delivery of the Foundation Programme across the United Kingdom, including in Northern Ireland. The UKFPO is funded by, and is accountable to, the four UK statutory education bodies, including the Northern Ireland Medical and Dental Training Agency.
NHS England is due to review the Foundation Programme allocation process. The review is aiming to commence in 2026. NHS England will advise stakeholders on how they can input in due course.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the forthcoming national cancer plan will introduce new targets for reducing late-diagnosis of cancer.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Reducing late diagnosis of cancer is a priority for the Department. As a first step, the National Health Service is now delivering an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week, to support early diagnosis and faster treatment.
NHS England is continuing the roll out of community diagnostic centres to ensure that patients can access the diagnostic tests they need as quickly as possible. The NHS is also improving pathways to get people diagnosed faster once they are referred, including non-specific symptom pathways for patients who do not fit clearly into a single urgent cancer referral pathway.
To further improve early intervention and reduce mortality rates, NHS England’s Help Us, Help You campaigns seek to address the barriers that are deterring patients from accessing the care they need. The campaign encourages people to come forward as soon as possible to see their general practitioner, focusing on a range of symptoms, as well as encouraging ‘body awareness’ to help people spot symptoms across a wide range of cancers at an earlier point.
Further actions on reducing late-diagnosis and improving survival for all cancers will be outlined in the forthcoming National Cancer Plan, which will be published later this year. It will seek to improve every aspect of cancer care to better the experiences and outcomes for people with cancer. The goal is to reduce the number of lives lost to cancer over the next ten years, and the ambition will be set out as part of the National Cancer Plan.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has taken steps following receipt of the BMA letter dated 4 April 2025 requesting review of the Foundation Programme allocations.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England is due to review the Foundation Programme allocation process to make sure it works well for applicants. The review is aiming to commence in 2026. NHS England will advise stakeholders how they can input in due course.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions his Department has had with the Northern Ireland Department of Health on working together on (a) research and (b) treatment for people with long covid.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has not had any specific discussions in relation to working together on research and treatment for long COVID with Northern Ireland’s Department of Health.
The Department of Health and Social Care funds research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR, through the Department, has had an arrangement with the devolved administrations, including in Northern Ireland, since 2008, based on investments from each nation that has allowed research hosts, including universities and research active National Health Service organisations, to apply for NIHR funding through the majority of our research programmes. This enables devolved nation-based researchers to lead studies across the range of health and social care priorities, and, importantly, allows more people to participate in an expanded range of research initiatives.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what consultation process has been followed with devolved nations in preparation for the Government's response to the Hughes Report, published on 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, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh. This is a complex area of work, involving several Government departments, and it is important that we get this right. We will be providing an update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s report at the earliest opportunity. Although the Hughes Report and its recommendations only cover patients harmed in England, the Government recognises that any response will likely have implications for the whole of the United Kingdom, and is therefore engaging with the devolved administrations on the Hughes Report.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent progress his Department has made in preparing Government's response to the Hughes Report, published on 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, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh. This is a complex area of work, involving several Government departments, and it is important that we get this right. We will be providing an update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s report at the earliest opportunity. Although the Hughes Report and its recommendations only cover patients harmed in England, the Government recognises that any response will likely have implications for the whole of the United Kingdom, and is therefore engaging with the devolved administrations on the Hughes Report.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what his planned timeline is for the Government's response to the Hughes Report, published on 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, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh. This is a complex area of work, involving several Government departments, and it is important that we get this right. We will be providing an update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s report at the earliest opportunity. Although the Hughes Report and its recommendations only cover patients harmed in England, the Government recognises that any response will likely have implications for the whole of the United Kingdom, and is therefore engaging with the devolved administrations on the Hughes Report.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
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 raise awareness during Teenage and Young Adult Cancer Awareness Month of the signs and symptoms of cancer in April 2025.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England and other National Health Service organisations, nationally and locally, publish information on the signs and symptoms of many different types of cancer, including those that are most common in teenagers and young adults. Further information on cancer signs and symptoms is available on the NHS.UK website.
The Department is committed to improving outcomes for teenagers and young adults with cancer. That’s why we have relaunched the Children and Young People Cancer Taskforce. The taskforce will explore opportunities for improvement in England, including detection and diagnosis, genomic testing and treatment, research and innovation, and patient experience. The taskforce will ensure that the unique needs of children and young people, including teenagers with cancer, are carefully considered as part of the National Cancer Plan for England, due to be published later this year.
As part of this work, the Department is committed to directly engaging with patients and their families to discuss their experiences. We are working with taskforce members to assemble a Patient Experience Panel, made up of young people with lived experience of cancer and their families, which will feed directly into the work of the taskforce.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to meet young people with cancer to discuss their experiences during Teenage and Young Adult Cancer Awareness Month in April 2025.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England and other National Health Service organisations, nationally and locally, publish information on the signs and symptoms of many different types of cancer, including those that are most common in teenagers and young adults. Further information on cancer signs and symptoms is available on the NHS.UK website.
The Department is committed to improving outcomes for teenagers and young adults with cancer. That’s why we have relaunched the Children and Young People Cancer Taskforce. The taskforce will explore opportunities for improvement in England, including detection and diagnosis, genomic testing and treatment, research and innovation, and patient experience. The taskforce will ensure that the unique needs of children and young people, including teenagers with cancer, are carefully considered as part of the National Cancer Plan for England, due to be published later this year.
As part of this work, the Department is committed to directly engaging with patients and their families to discuss their experiences. We are working with taskforce members to assemble a Patient Experience Panel, made up of young people with lived experience of cancer and their families, which will feed directly into the work of the taskforce.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to engage with (a) Kidney Care UK and (b) other patient representative organisations ahead of the World Health Assembly's debate on kidney health.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has met with Kidney Care UK and will be arranging further meetings with civil society organisations on the full range of health topics to be discussed in advance of the World Health Assembly in May 2025.