Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to ensure that all instances of fires in operating theatres across NHS England are reported to the Care Quality Commission.

Health and care providers in England are not required to report all surgical fires to the Care Quality Commission (CQC), except for those considered to be a serious incident. If the incident is serious, CQC is notified through the transfer of Strategic Executive Information System.

If CQC notes any fire safety concerns during an inspection, the provider gets referred to the local fire authority for them to take the appropriate action.

Any unexpected or unintended incident which could have or did lead to harm to one or more patients can be recorded on the Learn from Patient Safety Events service, to support local and national learning. This would include incidents caused by surgical fires or burns. Providers are encouraged to foster a positive safety culture among their staff, and ensure an appropriate local focus on incident recognition, recording, and response.