Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
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 build resilience in community pharmacies.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Pharmacies are an integral part of our communities. They are an easily accessible ‘front door’ to the National Health Service, staffed by highly skilled healthcare professionals. As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, we want pharmacies to play a bigger role as we shift more care out of hospitals and into the community.
The community pharmacy contractual framework was increased to £3.073 billion for 2025/26. This represents the largest uplift in funding of any part of the NHS, over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26. There is also additional funding available, for example for pharmacies delivering Pharmacy First consultations, and flu and COVID-19 vaccinations.
The Pharmacy First clinical pathways have been informed by guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and were designed with input from an expert panel of clinicians. NHS England is keeping the clinical scope of this service under review.
The Department will consult Community Pharmacy England on any proposed changes to reimbursement and remuneration of pharmacy contractors for 2026/27 shortly.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to extend the pharmacy first model.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Pharmacies are an integral part of our communities. They are an easily accessible ‘front door’ to the National Health Service, staffed by highly skilled healthcare professionals. As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, we want pharmacies to play a bigger role as we shift more care out of hospitals and into the community.
The community pharmacy contractual framework was increased to £3.073 billion for 2025/26. This represents the largest uplift in funding of any part of the NHS, over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26. There is also additional funding available, for example for pharmacies delivering Pharmacy First consultations, and flu and COVID-19 vaccinations.
The Pharmacy First clinical pathways have been informed by guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and were designed with input from an expert panel of clinicians. NHS England is keeping the clinical scope of this service under review.
The Department will consult Community Pharmacy England on any proposed changes to reimbursement and remuneration of pharmacy contractors for 2026/27 shortly.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS hospital trust chief executives have been appointed after being dismissed from other NHS hospital trusts.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
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 ensure the timely delivery of NHS mail to patients.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS hospital trust chief executives are on multi-year contracts.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 12 January 2026 to Questions 89643, what health risks his Department has identified in relation to first cousin marriage; and whether the Department intends to publish the (a) evidence and (b) analysis informing those assessments.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, following the recent announcement by NHS England that a life-extending drug for prostate cancer will shortly be available on the NHS, if he will hold discussions with the Northern Ireland Health Minister on providing that drug to patients in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Jayne Kirkham (Labour (Co-op) - Truro and Falmouth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many women have been affected by faulty PIP breast implants in Truro and Falmouth constituency.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how he plans to stabilise drug pricing for community pharmacies.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Pharmacies are an integral part of our communities. They are an easily accessible ‘front door’ to the National Health Service, staffed by highly skilled healthcare professionals. As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, we want pharmacies to play a bigger role as we shift more care out of hospitals and into the community.
The community pharmacy contractual framework was increased to £3.073 billion for 2025/26. This represents the largest uplift in funding of any part of the NHS, over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26. There is also additional funding available, for example for pharmacies delivering Pharmacy First consultations, and flu and COVID-19 vaccinations.
The Pharmacy First clinical pathways have been informed by guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and were designed with input from an expert panel of clinicians. NHS England is keeping the clinical scope of this service under review.
The Department will consult Community Pharmacy England on any proposed changes to reimbursement and remuneration of pharmacy contractors for 2026/27 shortly.
Asked by: Jen Craft (Labour - Thurrock)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the answer of 24 November 2025 to question 91186, what steps he will take to engage with BSL signers to assess the suitability of products which use Artificial Intelligence approaches to British Sign Language.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department is aware of a number of emerging products that use artificial intelligence (AI) to support translation into British Sign Language (BSL). While the Department and its arm’s‑length bodies are not currently developing or deploying such tools, any AI‑enabled BSL product proposed for use in the National Health Service would be subject to the medical device regulatory framework and will be assessed to determine whether it falls with the scope of regulations. These regulations are underpinned by rigorous standards established by bodies including the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulation Agency, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, the Health Research Authority, and the Care Quality Commission. These agencies ensure that AI technologies are safe, effective, and cost-effective within healthcare settings.
For any BSL products that use AI, meaningful engagement with BSL signers and Deaf communities is critical. This includes ensuring that proposed products provide a high quality service, meet communication needs identified through the Accessible Information Standard, and reflect the lived experience of BSL users. NHS England continues to work with stakeholders, including BSL users, providers, and representative groups, to improve accessibility and to understand where emerging technologies may safely and effectively support communication.