Asked by: Jess Brown-Fuller (Liberal Democrat - Chichester)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to provide consistent funding for fertility treatment across all NHS Trusts.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Access to NHS-funded fertility services varies across England, which is unacceptable.
Revised National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) fertility guidelines are due this Spring.
Funding decisions for health services in England are made by Integrated Care Boards (ICBs), based on their population’s clinical needs. We expect ICBs to commission fertility services consistent with these new guidelines, ensuring equal access to treatment across England.
Asked by: Ben Goldsborough (Labour - South Norfolk)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to take steps to ensure Enhertu remains available on the NHS.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Decisions on whether new medicines should be routinely funded by the National Health Service in England are made on the basis of recommendations from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) following an evaluation of a treatment’s costs and benefits. These are very difficult decisions to make, and it is important that they are made independently and on the basis of the available evidence.
NICE has recommended Enhertu (trastuzumab deruxtecan) for use through the Cancer Drugs Fund for the treatment of HER2-positive unresectable or metastatic breast cancer after one or more anti-HER 2 treatments and for treating HER2-positive unresectable or metastatic breast cancer after two or more anti-HER2 therapies. Enhertu is now funded for eligible patients in England through the Cancer Drugs Fund in line with NICE’s recommendations. NICE will consider the evidence collected on the use of Enhertu through the Cancer Drugs Fund into account in making recommendations for the NHS on whether it should be routinely funded by the NHS.
NICE published guidance in July 2024 on the use of Enhertu for the treatment of HER-2 low metastatic and unresectable breast cancer and was unfortunately unable to recommend it for routine NHS funding.
Asked by: Matt Bishop (Labour - Forest of Dean)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure specialist emotional and practical support is available for parents caring for children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise the challenges families caring for a seriously ill child face, which is why NHS England have published statutory guidance and service specifications on commissioning children’s palliative care and end of life care. This specifically references access to emotional support and practical advice for parents and loved ones. Local authorities and ICBs jointly commission short‑breaks packages for children with life‑limiting conditions, and provide respite care where necessary. Additionally, from April 2025, the Carer’s Allowance earnings limit increased from £151 a week to £196 to support carers. The Minister for Care also chairs a cross-government meeting with DWP, DBT and DfE ministers to consider how we can provide carers with better recognition and support.Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve access to routine tissue freezing for brain cancer patients in Newbury.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Information on the number of National Health Service trusts in England that have facilities for fresh freezing brain cancer tissue samples is not currently collected and no recent assessment has been made on the adequacy, extent, or capacity of procedures for freezing brain cancer and general cancer tissue samples across NHS trusts in England.
Pathology services in England are delivered through 27 regional pathology networks, and offer a comprehensive range of tests, including the analysis of brain tissues. Individual pathology services maintain their own standard operating procedures (SOPs) for fresh, or snap-freezing, of tissue samples. These SOPs outline local capabilities and practices.
In addition, the Department invests over £1.6 billion each year in research through the National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR’s investments for capital equipment, technology, and modular buildings support NHS trusts across England to deliver high-quality research to improve the health of the population. This investment includes cutting edge research equipment and fixed assets such as ultra-low and cryogenic freezers, to strengthen research capacity and improve access to samples for research.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has had discussions with the Information Commissioner’s Office on potential investigations into electronic record-sharing in the NHS in West Dorset constituency.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has not had any discussions with the Office of the Information Commissioner about electronic record sharing in the National Health Service in West Dorset.
Asked by: Sarah Pochin (Reform UK - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Department has received formal representations from professional medical bodies regarding the PATHWAYS trial since ethical approval was granted.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to supporting research that delivers a robust, evidence-based understanding of the needs, and support and treatment options for children and young people living with gender dysphoria. A partnership between NHS England and the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) is working to fund and deliver independent research that fulfils that aim.
One element of this is the PATHWAYS trial, a carefully designed clinical trial to assess the relative benefits and harms of puberty-suppressing hormones as a treatment option for children and young people with gender incongruence. The trial protocol is publicly available on the NIHR website, at the following link:
https://fundingawards.nihr.ac.uk/award/NIHR167530.
This positively responds to the Cass Review’s recommendation that a clinical trial, alongside a broader programme of research, was necessary to gather the evidence required into the most effective way to care for this group of children and young people.
The trial was designed and will be delivered by an independent research team. This was in conjunction with patient and public involvement as well as independent clinical and legal experts, including those who specialise on medical ethics. This team is responsible for the protocol design, including eligibility criteria, consent, and outcomes.
The proposal has been through all the usual review and approval stages ahead of set up and opening to recruitment. These include independent academic peer review, NIHR funding committee consideration, and a full regulatory review, including a focus on ethics. It has obtained approval from the regulatory authorities, including the Health Research Authority Ethics Committee and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.
Asked by: Will Forster (Liberal Democrat - Woking)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the effectiveness of the Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease; and what support the NHS provides to people with Motor Neurone Disease in southern England.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England does not commission services from the Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease (MND). Funding for the centre is provided by the Leeds Hospital charity service. Therefore, neither NHS England, nor the Department, have made an assessment of the effectiveness of the centre.
NHS England commissions specialised services for neurology, which includes MND. There are 27 specialised neurology centres in England, eight of which are in London, three of which are in the south-east, and two of which are in the south-west.
In August 2025, NHS England published a revised service specification for specialised adult neurology services. It outlines a number of minimum service requirements for key specialties, including neuromuscular disorders like MND, and is avaiable at the following link:
There are a number of initiatives supporting service improvement and better care for patients with MND, including the Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology and the RightCare Progressive Neurological Conditions Toolkit. NHS England has also established a Neurology Transformation Programme, a multi-year, clinically led programme, which has developed a new model of integrated care to support integrated care boards to deliver the right service, at the right time for all neurology patients, including those with MND.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase help access to weight loss injections for people with long-term health conditions.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 19 November 2025 to Question 89687.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the press notice by the Royal College of Physician of 13 November 2025, which called for a UK-wide public health campaign on air pollution.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Clean air is a key part of our shift from ‘sickness to prevention’ as per the 10-Year Health Plan for England, which sets out action to further improve the quality of the air we breathe.
Alongside the 10-Year Health Plan, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ Environmental Improvement Plan, published in December 2025, outlines commitments to improve the communication of air quality information.
Government action is being informed by the recommendations from the Air Quality Information System review report published in 2025, which specifically considered ways to increase public awareness about air pollution.
We will continue to work closely with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to reduce the health harms of air pollution and to help make air quality part of everyday conversations.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Public Order Act and the proposed designation of “life sciences” as key national infrastructure, what evidence was used to conclude that existing police powers are inadequate to address disruptive protest activity affecting life sciences sites, including animal research and testing facilities.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
On Thursday 27 November 2025, the Home Office laid an affirmative Statutory Instrument in Parliament to amend Section 7 and Section 8 of the Public Order Act 2023. This will amend the list of key national infrastructure within Section 7 of the Public Order Act 2023, to add the Life Sciences sector and define the Life Sciences sector in Section 8 of the Act.
To ensure these powers are workable and proportionate, the Home Office undertook targeted engagement with the police, the Crown Prosecution Service, and the Office for Life Sciences as the relevant government unit between the Department of Health and Social Care, and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and authorities with executive responsibility in their respective fields. This engagement provided a broad and comprehensive understanding of the challenges being managed by the Life Sciences Sector.
The government remains committed to safeguarding the right to peaceful protest while ensuring that public order and safety are maintained. The amendments to the Public Order Act 2023 reflect the balance between these priorities, responding directly to the evidence gathered from those responsible for maintaining public safety and order.