Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
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 publish guidance on managing hypoglycaemia that includes (a) treatment, (b) when to seek medical help and (c) rules for those with diabetes who drive or operate heavy machinery.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has published advice on the management of type 1 diabetes, including advice on managing acute hypoglycaemia, which is available at the following link:
https://cks.nice.org.uk/topics/diabetes-type-1/management/
There are no current plans for the Department to publish specific guidance for distinct workforce groups.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the eligibility criteria for individuals to be considered for (a) Covid and (b) Flu vaccinations in Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to protecting those most vulnerable to COVID-19 and flu through vaccination, as guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). Eligibility for vaccination programmes informed by JCVI advice is set at a national level. The primary aim of the vaccination programmes remains the prevention of serious illness, resulting in hospitalisations and deaths, arising from COVID-19 and flu.
The JCVI has advised that population immunity to COVID-19 has been increasing due to a combination of naturally acquired immunity following recovery from infection and vaccine-derived immunity. COVID-19 is now a relatively mild disease for most people, though it can still be unpleasant, with rates of hospitalisation and death from COVID-19 having reduced significantly since COVID-19 first emerged.
The focus of the JCVI advised programme has therefore moved towards targeted vaccination of the two groups who continue to be at higher risk of serious disease, including mortality. These are the oldest adults and individuals who are immunosuppressed.
The Government has accepted the JCVI advice for autumn 2025 and in line with the advice, a COVID-19 vaccination is being offered to the following groups in autumn 2025:
- adults aged 75 years old and over;
- residents in care homes for older adults; and
- individuals aged six months and over who are immunosuppressed.
Flu is a recurring pressure that the National Health Service faces every winter. There is particular risk of severe illness for older people, the very young, pregnant people, and those with certain underlying health conditions. In line with the JCVI’s advice, those eligible to receive a free flu vaccine on the NHS this autumn are those who:
- are children aged two or three years old on 31 August 2025;
- are primary school aged children, from Reception to Year 6;
- are secondary school aged children, from Year 7 to Year 11;
- are children in clinical risk groups aged from six months to less than 18 years old;
- are aged 65 years old or over, including those who will be 65 years old by 31 March 2026;
- have certain long-term health conditions;
- are pregnant;
- live in a care home;
- are the main carer for an older or disabled person, or receive a carer's allowance;
- live with someone who has a weakened immune system;
- are frontline workers in a social care setting without an employer led occupational health scheme, including those working for a registered residential care or nursing home, registered domiciliary care providers, voluntary managed hospice providers, and those that are employed by those who receive direct payments, for personal budgets, or Personal Health budgets, such as personal assistants; and
- frontline health and social care workers, who can access the flu vaccine through their employer. There are circumstances where frontline staff, employed by specific social care providers without access to employer led occupational health schemes, see cohort eligibility above, can access the vaccine through the NHS free of charge.
As with other United Kingdom vaccination programmes, the JCVI’s advice on eligibility for both of these programmes carefully considered the evidence on the risk of illness, serious disease, or death as a consequence of infection, in specific groups, as well as a cost-effectiveness analysis. The JCVI keeps their advice under review.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of pharmaceutical pollution in waterways on public health.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Environment Agency routinely monitors for a wide range of chemicals as part of their chemical surveillance of inland water bodies. In addition, the UK Health Security Agency assesses the potential public health impact of these.
Asked by: Victoria Collins (Liberal Democrat - Harpenden and Berkhamsted)
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 improve support for adults with cerebral palsy.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to ensuring that people living with cerebral palsy have access to appropriate support and services throughout their lives, enabling them to fulfil their potential and lead healthy, productive lives.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published a guideline for adults with cerebral palsy, code NG119. The guideline recommends regular reviews of clinical and functional needs, clear care pathways, and access to multi-disciplinary teams and specialist neurology services. The guideline is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng119
The 10-Year Health Plan sets out a vision for a health and care system that delivers more personalised, integrated, and proactive care for people with long-term and complex conditions, including cerebral palsy. By 2027, 95% of people with complex needs should have an agreed personal care plan. These will promote shared decision-making and access to personal health budgets, giving individuals more choice and control over therapies, equipment, and support tailored to their needs. Additionally, integrated neighbourhood health teams will bring together professionals across disciplines to deliver joined-up care for people with cerebral palsy.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will undertake a review of the (a) fitting, (b) quality and (c) patient feedback on (i) post-surgery bras and (ii) breast protheses received through the NHS.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Decisions about the funding and provision of health services, including post-surgery bras and breast protheses, are the responsibility of local integrated care boards.
NHS England funded audits into primary and metastatic breast cancer to help identify and reduce inequalities and variations in care. Using routine data collected on patients diagnosed with breast cancer in a National Health Service setting, the audits bring together information to look at what is being done well, where it is being done well, and what needs to be done better. Findings were published in September 2025, and the NHS is acting on the findings.
Patient experience and outcomes remain a key priority for the Department, and we will continue to look for opportunities to improve all aspects of cancer care. The National Cancer Plan, due to be published early in the new year, will have patients at its heart and will cover the entirety of the cancer pathway, including people living with and beyond cancer.
Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
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 8 September 2025 to Question 73473 on Health Services: Apprentices, if he will make an estimate of the cost to the public purse of funding the provision of those Level 7 apprenticeships in each of the next five years.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Funding for the continuation of Level 7 apprenticeships in five professions has been agreed by NHS England and the Department for courses starting from 1 January 2026 up to 31 March 2029. Funding can be used by employers to cover education costs which would previously have been funded through the apprenticeship levy.
Final expenditure is subject to the number of actual apprenticeship starts in each year. However, total funding will be capped annually, aligned to 2023/24 start numbers.
Asked by: Caroline Johnson (Conservative - Sleaford and North Hykeham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation's report entitled Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) immunisation programme for adults aged 80 years and older: JCVI advice, published on 16 July 2025, whether the NHS is offering the respiratory syncytial virus vaccine to (a) all adults aged 80 years old and over and (b) all residents of adult care homes.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
In advice published on 16 July 2025, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advised that the routine respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) programme be extended to also include adults aged 80 years and older, and all residents in a care home for older adults.
During a debate on Accident and Emergency Waiting Times on 22 July 2025, my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, confirmed to the Hon. Member that we had already accepted the JCVI advice to extend the routine RSV programme and reassured you that the Department was working at pace on implementation. He did not confirm plans or timings to implement the advice.
At Oral Answers to Questions – Health and Social Care, on 21 October 2025, my Rt. Hon. Friend told the Hon. Member that we had delivered on the commitment to extend the routine RSV programme to adults aged 80 years and older, and all residents in a care home for older adults. His response referred to the acceptance of the JCVI advice and ongoing work to implement that advice. The RSV programme could not be expanded ahead of this winter. However, we have updated the eligibility of the catch-up programme for 7579-year-olds so anyone who turned 80 on or after 1 September 2024 but has not yet come forward for vaccination can continue to do so. Initially, those who turned 80 in the first year of the programme only remained eligible until 31 August 2025, but that has now been extended.
The Department is in discussions with NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency on potential implementation. The Department is exploring delivery options and their impact, including on other vaccination programmes, to ensure any changes deliver the best value for money. We will make a final decision about whether and how to implement the JCVI’s advice, including the timing of any expansion to the older adult RSV programme, when this work has concluded.
Asked by: Jo White (Labour - Bassetlaw)
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 develop a modern service framework for kidney disease.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
As announced in the 10-Year Health Plan, as well as an overall quality strategy, the National Quality Board will oversee the development of a new series of service frameworks.
The modern service frameworks will define an aspirational, long-term outcome goal for a major condition and will then identify the best evidenced interventions and the necessary support for delivery.
Early priorities will include cardiovascular disease, severe mental illness, and the first ever service framework for frailty and dementia. The Government will consider other long-term conditions for future waves of modern service frameworks. The criteria for determining other conditions for future modern service frameworks will be based on where there is potential for rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity.
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, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of mandatory calorie labelling on menus on (a) eating habits and (b) measures of health beyond calorie intake.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Legislation requires large businesses in England, those with 250 or more employees, to display calorie information on non-prepacked food and soft drinks.
The policy aims to support consumers to improve eating habits by making healthier choices for themselves and their families when eating out or getting a takeaway, with clear information about the calorie content of potential purchases. The policy may also impact measures of health beyond calorie intake by encouraging businesses to reformulate and provide lower calorie options, helping to create a healthier food environment.
The published impact assessment estimated that by lowering calorie consumption amongst people living with overweight or obesity, the policy would produce NHS savings of £430 million and social care savings of £477 million over 25 years.
We continue to evaluate the impact of the Out of Home Calorie Labelling Regulations and will publish a post-implementation review within five years of implementation which will consider the effectiveness and impact of the policy.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department made of the adequacy of the use of single unique identifiers for schools, in the context of the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Provision in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill to introduce a single unique identifier (SUI) for children is based on extensive user research, including engagement with schools and education settings. Our 2023 report, ‘Improving multi-agency information sharing’, highlighted that while schools use identifiers such as the unique pupil number (UPN), these are not recognised across other agencies that process and share information relating to safeguarding and welfare, creating fragmentation and risk.
To address this, the department began pilot activity in April 2025 to test the feasibility of using the NHS number as a consistent identifier within health and children’s social care. Future piloting will test this across wider safeguarding partners, including education. The intention is not to replace identifiers that are currently used in education, but to design how the SUI can work alongside existing identifiers to improve information sharing and strengthen safeguarding.