Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to begin consulting with adult social care providers on proposals for a Fair Pay Agreement.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
In England, we are committed to consulting on the design of the Fair Pay Agreement process, and we aim to begin a public consultation after the Employment Rights Bill receives Royal Assent later this year. We expect the consultation to run for 12 weeks, and we will work with partners to reach as much of the sector as possible.
We have already begun engaging with sector representatives in England through the Department’s Fair Pay Agreement Working Group and policy specific task and finish groups, which will help to inform policy options for a public consultation on the design of the Fair Pay Agreement process.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of changes to the employers' National Insurance Contributions on providers of adult social care.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department routinely conducts assessments of cost pressures for local authority funded adult social care, which include the costs associated with changes to employers’ National Insurance contributions.
To enable local authorities to deliver key services such as adult social care, the Government has made available up to £3.7 billion of additional funding for social care authorities in 2025/26. There is also an extra £502 million of support for local authorities in England to manage the impact of changes to employer National Insurance contributions, as announced at the Autumn Budget.
In addition, the Spending Review allows for an increase of over £4 billion of funding available for adult social care in 2028/29 compared to 2025/26.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
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 babies and young children are included in the 10-Year Health Plan.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to raising the healthiest generation of children ever.
The 10-Year Health Plan to reform the National Health Service will make it fit for the future. This includes policies that will impact on babies, and young children. The plan will draw directly from the extensive engagement we have undertaken with the public, patients, and staff, including organisations who represent babies and young children as well as children themselves.
We are in the final stages of developing the plan and will publish it shortly.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
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 there is a clear referral pathway for (a) autism and (b) ADHD assessments for children around the age of five.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessment services and referral pathways, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines.
On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance to help ICBs and the National Health Service to deliver improved outcomes for children, young people, and adults referred to an autism assessment service. This includes guidance on identification and referral for autism assessments. Since publication, NHS England has been supporting systems and services to use this guidance to support the delivery of autism assessment pathways.
In respect of ADHD, NHS England has established an ADHD taskforce which is working to bring together those with lived experience with experts from the NHS, education, charity, and justice sectors. The taskforce is working to get a better understanding of the challenges affecting those with ADHD, including timely and equitable access to services and support, and to make recommendations for improvement. The interim report was published on 20 June 2025, with the final report expected in the summer.
If an individual suspects their child is autistic or has ADHD, they should speak to a general practitioner (GP) or a health visitor, for children under five years old, and after the appointment the GP may decide to refer them for an assessment. Further information can be found on the NHS website.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
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 increase the availability of specialist dental provision for patients with autism.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Community Dental Services (CDS) provide specialised dental services to people with additional needs, such as people with autism, and are available in a variety of places to ensure everyone can access National Health Service dental care. These include hospitals, centres providing specialist services and mobile clinics, as well as home visits or visits in nursing and care homes.
The Getting it Right First Time report published by NHS England in January 2025, sets out recommendations to improve CDS for children and adults. In response, we are improving data reporting to increase oversight of CDS activity, and integrated care boards will consider the recommendations as part of their responsibility for commissioning CDS for their local areas. The report is available from the following link:
Under the Health and Care Act 2022, providers registered with the Care Quality Commission must ensure their staff receive specific training on learning disability and autism appropriate to their role. This will help to ensure that staff have the right knowledge and skills to provide safe and informed care for these people.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what priority is being given to cases of suicide by sodium nitrate poisoning within the Government’s ongoing implementation of the suicide prevention strategy.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Every suicide is a tragedy that has a devastating and enduring impact on families, friends and communities. The suicide prevention strategy for England sets out priority areas and key actions to address the risk factors contributing to suicide. Tackling methods of suicides is one of these priority areas.
The Government continues to take steps to reduce access to, and awareness of, this substance. The Department of Health and Social Care leads a Concerning Methods Working Group which develops and delivers rapid targeted actions to collectively reduce public access to emerging methods of suicide, including this substance. The group involves representatives from the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector, police, academics and the National Health Service, as well as Government departments including Department of Science, Innovation and Technology and the Home Office. This substance has been a particular focus of the actions implemented since the group was established and continues to be a priority of the Government’s approach to preventing suicides.
The group has worked with retailers and manufacturers to prevent this substance being sold for the purpose of suicide and the Home Office works with retailers to raise awareness and to remind them of their obligation to report suspicious activity relating to this action.
We continue to work operationally with a range of organisations, and we are actively considering further opportunities alongside the NHS, Border Force, police, charities and a range of Government departments.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to introduce restrictions on purchasing sodium nitrate in quantities that pose a significant risk to (a) self harm and (b) life.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are committed to implementing our suicide prevention strategy for England, which sets out priority areas and key actions to address the risk factors contributing to suicide and self-harm. Tackling methods of suicide and self-harm is one of these priority areas.
The Government continues to take steps to reduce access to, and awareness of, sodium nitrate. The Department leads a Concerning Methods Working Group, which develops and delivers rapid targeted actions to collectively reduce public access to, and awareness of, emerging methods of suicide, including the use of sodium nitrate. The group involves representatives from Government departments, including the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology and the Home Office, as well as representatives from the voluntary, community, and social enterprise sector, police, academics, and the National Health Service. This substance has been a particular focus of the actions implemented since the group was established and continues to be a priority in discussions about further action to be taken.
The group has worked with manufacturers, suppliers, and retailers to reduce access to this substance, where people may be intending to use it for suicide.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to (a) simplify the exemption process for dental charges for people on Universal Credit and (b) introduce a real-time exemption checker for use in dental practices similar to those used in pharmacies.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Free National Health Service dental care is available to people who meet the following criteria:
- under 18 years old, or under 19 years old and in full-time education;
- pregnant, or have had a baby in the previous 12 months;
- being treated in an NHS hospital and the treatment is carried out by the hospital dentist, although patients may have to pay for any dentures or bridges; or
- receiving low-income benefits, or under 20 years old and a dependant of someone receiving low-income benefits.
Support is also available through the NHS Low Income Scheme for those patients who are not eligible for an exemption or for full remission of dental patient charges. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/dentists/who-is-entitled-to-free-nhs-dental-treatment-in-england/
It is the patient’s responsibility to check their eligibility for exemptions from dental patient charges and to help with health costs. The Department has provided information to dental practices on signposting patients to the NHS Business Services Authority’s resources on dental patient charges. This includes the ‘Check before you Tick’ website which provides an immediate way to check eligibility for free dental treatment. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/dont-get-caught-out-penalty-charges/check-you-tick
There are no current plans to expand Real Time Exemption Checking beyond the pharmacy setting.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
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 adequacy of treatment of trans patients in primary care; and whether those patients receive adequate treatment for biological health needs.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is important that all patients, including transgender patients, feel comfortable and confident in accessing primary care services.
The Government is committed to ensuring that transgender patients receive the care and support they need when accessing National Health Services. This includes where care is sex specific, such as the Cervical Screening Management System launched in June 2024, which will allow people to register their sex at birth as well as their gender identity, which should allow for better call/recall for transgender and non-binary people who have a cervix.
In line with the recommendations of the Cass Review, NHS England is currently undertaking a review of adult gender services. The review will examine the model of care and operating procedures of each service, with the aim of producing an updated service specification.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
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 ensure that adults with autism are not placed in accommodation that disrupts access to established support networks.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Under the Care Act 2014, local authorities are tasked with the duty to shape their care markets to meet the diverse needs of all local people. This includes encouraging a wide range of service provision to ensure that people have a choice of appropriate services that put the wellbeing of people who draw on care at the centre of decisions.
The Care and Support Statutory Guidance sets out that health, care and support, and housing services should centre on the individual and their family. Housing services should be used to help promote an individual’s wellbeing, so that people in need of care and support and carers can build a full and active life. Suitability of living accommodation is one of the matters local authorities must take into account as part of their duty to promote an individual’s wellbeing.
The Department is launching an independent commission into adult social care as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a National Care Service. The commission, led by Baroness Casey, will start a national conversation about what working age adults, older people, and their families expect from adult social care. While the commission carries out its work, the Department is taking immediate action to improve adult social care.