Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the UK Rare Diseases Framework on international collaboration since January 2021.

Whilst no assessment has been made, international collaboration is an underpinning theme of the UK Rare Diseases Framework. The Department continues to engage with the Horizon Europe Partnership on Rare Diseases, due to begin in autumn 2024. To support United Kingdom input into the proposal for the partnership, we have worked with Newcastle University to establish an International Mirror and Action Group, bringing together UK researchers working on rare diseases. We also engage with the World Health Organisation and Rare Diseases International on development of the important Global Network for Rare Diseases initiative, which will pool resources and connect centres of excellence around the world, to improve diagnosis and care for people living with a rare disease.