Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the causes of increases in the number of hospital admissions of older people for cold-related illnesses since 2012.

A greater number of people die, or are admitted to hospital, during the winter than any other time of year. There are, on average, around 25,000 excess winter deaths each year in England; for every one excess winter death it has been estimated that there are approximately eight extra hospital admissions.

The causes of excess winter death and illness are complex and interlinked, and include circulating diseases such as influenza, cold temperatures and wider determinants of health, such as poor housing. It is difficult to precisely attribute the relative impacts of each on overall levels of death and illness and there is a degree of variation year on year.

Cold weather directly increases the risk of heart attacks, strokes, lung disease, flu, falls and injuries and hypothermia. Indirect effects of cold include mental health illnesses such as depression, risk of carbon monoxide poisoning if appliances are poorly maintained or poorly ventilated, and disruption to service provision. Some groups, such as older people, very young children, and people with serious medical conditions are particularly vulnerable to the effects of cold weather.

Public Health England publishes the Cold Weather Plan for England to avoid preventable illness and deaths in winter by setting out a series of actions for organisations, communities and individuals, to take throughout the year.