Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to provide additional support for an urgent scale-up of cholera response in Sudan.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The conflict in Sudan and the widespread destruction of sanitation and health services has caused a devastating cholera outbreak with more than 100,000 cases and 2,500 deaths since July 2024. More than 33.5 million people are at risk across all 18 states. The UK Government continues to work with a range of international partners to deliver lifesaving emergency health interventions, including cholera vaccines, treatment, and prevention. Additionally, through a 'match funding' arrangement we have recently partnered with the State of Kuwait to deliver an additional £3.75 million to the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), supplementing UK resources already allocated to combat the outbreak. We continue to urge the warring parties in Sudan to facilitate humanitarian access so that aid reaches those most in need.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the implementation of the 10 Year Health Plan will help tackle inequalities in the commissioning of hospice services.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We know that there are inequalities in access to palliative care and end of life care and we are looking at how best to reduce these. The Department and NHS England are currently looking at how to improve the access, quality, and sustainability of all-age palliative care and end of life care in line with the 10-Year Health Plan.

We will closely monitor the shift towards the strategic commissioning of palliative care and end of life care services to ensure that services reduce variation in access and quality, although some variation may be appropriate to reflect both innovation and the needs of local populations.

Officials will present further proposals to ministers over the coming months, outlining the drivers and incentives that are required in palliative care and end of life care to enable the shift from hospital to community, including as part of neighbourhood health teams.