Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a statutory public inquiry into systemic issues with maternity and neonatal services.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to making pregnancy and maternity and neonatal care safer, supporting families through every stage of that journey, and giving every child the best possible start in life.
The findings of both Baroness Amos’ independent investigation into maternity and neonatal services, and Donna Ockenden’s review into maternity services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust underline the scale and urgency of the challenge we face. Too many women, babies, and families have experienced unacceptable care, and too many families continue to live with the devastating consequences when services fail.
My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has made this issue a personal priority, and is chairing the Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce to develop a single, national action plan – reflecting the recommendations from the Amos and Ockenden reviews – that will drive systemic and sustained improvement across maternity and neonatal care, and deliver lasting change for women, families, and their babies.
We recognise the importance of ensuring that the experiences of families affected by maternity and neonatal harm are reflected in the Taskforce’s work. The Taskforce is supported by three family expert reference groups made up of individuals with lived experience of maternity and neonatal care, including women and families who have experienced harm, parents and families caring for children affected by maternity and neonatal harm, and families who have experienced bereavement. The chairs of these groups sit on the Taskforce and represent the views and priorities raised by their members.
The Taskforce is also considering as a matter of urgency the full scope and role of the Maternity and Neonatal Commissioner prior to the appointment of that post.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what representations she has received from bereaved and harmed families on the findings and recommendations of the National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation; and what steps she is taking in response to those representations.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to making pregnancy and maternity and neonatal care safer, supporting families through every stage of that journey, and giving every child the best possible start in life.
The findings of both Baroness Amos’ independent investigation into maternity and neonatal services, and Donna Ockenden’s review into maternity services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust underline the scale and urgency of the challenge we face. Too many women, babies, and families have experienced unacceptable care, and too many families continue to live with the devastating consequences when services fail.
My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has made this issue a personal priority, and is chairing the Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce to develop a single, national action plan – reflecting the recommendations from the Amos and Ockenden reviews – that will drive systemic and sustained improvement across maternity and neonatal care, and deliver lasting change for women, families, and their babies.
We recognise the importance of ensuring that the experiences of families affected by maternity and neonatal harm are reflected in the Taskforce’s work. The Taskforce is supported by three family expert reference groups made up of individuals with lived experience of maternity and neonatal care, including women and families who have experienced harm, parents and families caring for children affected by maternity and neonatal harm, and families who have experienced bereavement. The chairs of these groups sit on the Taskforce and represent the views and priorities raised by their members.
The Taskforce is also considering as a matter of urgency the full scope and role of the Maternity and Neonatal Commissioner prior to the appointment of that post.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when she plans to commence the appointment process for the statutory Maternity and Neonatal Commissioner; and when she expects the successful candidate to take up that post.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Rt. Hon. Member to the answer provided on 28 July in response to Question HL2548.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has make an assessment of the potential merits of developing a national clinical pathway for the diagnosis and management of lipoedema.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided to the Hon Member for Southport on 3 July 2026 in response to Question 12297.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has had discussions with NICE on a potential timetable for reviewing guidance on liposuction for chronic lipoedema.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided to the Hon Member for Southport on 3 July 2026 in response to Question 12297.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to increase awareness of lipoedema among (a) GPs and (b) other relevant healthcare professionals.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided to the Hon Member for Southport on 3 July 2026 in response to Question 12297.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support is available to ICBs to commission specialist services for people with lipoedema.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided to the Hon Member for Southport on 3 July 2026 in response to Question 12297.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of trends in regional variation in access to diagnosis and treatment for lipoedema.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided to the Hon Member for Southport on 3 July 2026 in response to Question 12297.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that midwifery education, training and clinical practice do not prioritise physiological birth over patient safety, informed consent and individual clinical need.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to making pregnancy and maternity and neonatal care safer, supporting families through every stage of that journey, and giving every child the best possible start in life.
The Department, NHS England and the Nursing Midwifery Council are urgently working to ensure that midwifery training consistently delivers modern maternity care that respects a woman’s choice and individual circumstances.
The National Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce, which is comprised of family representatives, clinicians and other experts, and chaired by my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, will oversee the development of a single, national action plan to drive systemic and sustained improvement across maternity and neonatal care. We will publish the action plan by the end of the year. Once published, the taskforce will hold the system to account for implementing the action plan and improving outcomes and experiences for women, babies and families, as well as staff.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the level of need for NHS health professionals to ask about children’s screen use and social media exposure during routine case histories; and whether guidance will be issued to support clinicians, including newly qualified speech and language therapists, in distinguishing between screen-related language delay and Developmental Language Disorder.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
The Department recognises the issue of children’s screen use and social media exposure, and the role National Health Service professionals can play.
Screen use guidance forms a core part of the Government’s response to online harms, complementing regulatory action by providing clear, practical advice to parents on supporting safe, balanced, and developmentally appropriate use of digital technologies.
On 27 March 2026, the Government published advice for parents and carers on screen use for children aged zero to five years old on the Best Start in Life website, at the following link:
https://beststartinlife.gov.uk/screen-time-under-5s
This advice offers practical, non-judgemental support to help families balance screen use with other activities. The Children of the 2020s study found that children with the highest screen use at age two, around five hours daily, can say significantly fewer words than those with lower use, although this does not necessarily mean that one causes the other. We are taking a precautionary approach to screen use for younger children, especially where screen time may be replacing activities like moving, sleeping, and playing, which are all important for children’s health and development.
Building on the guidance for zero to five year olds, the Department of Health and Social Care is now working closely with the Department for Education to develop further parent and carer facing guidance for five to 16-year-olds to promote safe and healthy engagement with the digital world. Following the closure of our call for evidence on 29 June, we are reviewing the evidence received to inform the guidance, due to be published this autumn. This work is also being informed by an independent Expert Advisory Group, co-chaired by Children’s Commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza and Professor Russell Viner.
The Department of Health and Social Care is also working closely with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology on the Government’s media literacy action plan, and we will explore how we can distribute useful information about screen use and social media to relevant clinical and public health networks.
The NHS does not currently have a specific requirement for NHS clinicians to routinely ask about children’s screen use or social media exposure. Clinicians, including speech and language therapists, take a holistic developmental history, considering a range of environmental factors where clinically relevant in order to determine a course of treatment. Clinicians are expected to draw on existing evidence, professional training, and clinical judgement in the assessment of healthcare needs.