Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps is he taking alongside Cabinet colleagues to increase healthcare provision on new housing estates in West Dorset constituency.

Integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning, which includes planning, securing, and monitoring, general practice services within their health systems through delegated responsibility from NHS England. The National Health Service has a statutory duty to ensure that there are sufficient medical services, including general practice, in each local area. It should take account of population growth and demographic changes.

Local planning authorities are responsible for negotiating and agreeing developer contributions to support necessary associated infrastructure when new housing developments are built. The Department for Health and Social Care is working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government to determine how developer contributions from new housing developments can be better used towards local health services and infrastructure.

As part of the 10-Year Health Plan, the Government has committed to deliver a Neighbourhood Health Centre (NHC) in every community across the country over the course of the plan. We announced our commitment at the Autumn Budget to deliver 250 NHCs through the NHS Neighbourhood Rebuild Programme. This will deliver NHCs through a mixture of refurbishments to expand and improve sites over the next three years, and new-build sites opening in the medium term.