Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of levels of parental (a) choice and (b) responsibility to decide the medical care their child receives.

No assessment has been made of the adequacy of levels of parental choice and responsibility to decide the medical care their child receives. Those with parental responsibilities are entitled to give consent for medical treatment on behalf of their children. However, they are not entitled to inappropriate treatment for their children, or to refuse treatment which is in the child’s best interests.