Asked by: Sadik Al-Hassan (Labour - North Somerset)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to Action 28 (i) of the Life Sciences Sector Plan, published on 16 July 2025, what criteria his Department plans to use to identify (a) low affordability risk and (b) strong long-term outcome data, in the context of identifying eligibility for the proportionate approach to indication-specific pricing agreements.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The criteria will be developed alongside the new proportionate approach to indication-specific pricing arrangements.
Asked by: Sadik Al-Hassan (Labour - North Somerset)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to Action 28 (i) of the Life Sciences Sector Plan, published on 16 July 2025, what criteria his Department plans to use to identify which medicines have a large number of indications, in the context of identifying eligibility for the proportionate approach to indication-specific pricing agreements.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The criteria will be developed alongside the new proportionate approach to indication-specific pricing arrangements.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support rural childcare providers to recruit qualified staff.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The early years workforce is at the heart of our mission to give every child the best start in life and deliver the Plan for Change.
The latest early years census data reports a 7.2% increase in the number of workers between 2024/25, to 272,500 staff. This represents an increase of 18,200 workers, which is the biggest increase we’ve seen since the data became available in 2018.
We are supporting recruitment through our national ‘Do something BIG’ campaign, with a dedicated website setting out information on qualifications and linking to job vacancies, alongside financial incentives to attract and retain educators in areas of most need, including some rural areas. In addition, we are working with the Department for Work and Pensions to promote and raise awareness of early years careers through the Jobcentre Plus network. We are working with local authorities and mayoral strategic authorities to create new routes into the workforce through skills bootcamps and funding early years initial teacher training, while our delivery support contractor, Childcare Works, is supporting local authorities and providers with one-to-one targeted support, including in rural areas.
Asked by: Jess Asato (Labour - Lowestoft)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of publishing annual statistics on the number of children who miss education due to long term illness; and if she will publish statistics on the child's (a) region, (b) age, (c) ethnicity, (d) gender and (e) type of illness.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department collects data on children missing education from local authorities. The latest data, including breakdowns by geography, characteristic and length of time missing education, is published here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/children-missing-education/2024-25-autumn-term. This includes data by region, age, ethnicity and gender.
The department does not yet publish data on physical health or mental health as a primary reason for children missing education. However, these fields have been added to the aggregate termly local authority data collection for the first time beginning autumn 2025 and will be included in the next official statistics release.
Data on pupil absence is collected via the school census and the latest publication is here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/pupil-absence-in-schools-in-england/2023-24. Reasons for absence are included in the publication, including the illness rate.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of nursery availability on parents' ability to return to work when claiming Universal Credit in West Dorset constituency.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
It is the department’s ambition that all families have access to high quality, affordable and flexible early education and care, giving every child the best start in life and delivering on our Plan for Change. In 2025/26 alone, we plan to provide over £8 billion for the early years entitlements, which is an additional £2 billion, as we roll out the expansion of the entitlements. We will also work with the Department for Work and Pensions to make it easier for parents to use Universal Credit Childcare and the funded hours together.
The department has regular contact with each local authority in England about its sufficiency of childcare and any issues it faces. Where local authorities report sufficiency challenges, we discuss what action can be taken to address those issues and, where needed, support the local authority with any specific requirements through our childcare sufficiency support contract.
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, what progress his Department has made on the roll-out of Fracture Liaison Services.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Fracture Liaison Services are commissioned by integrated care boards, which are well-placed to make decisions according to local need.
Our 10-Year Health Plan committed to rolling out Fracture Liaison Services across every part of the country by 2030.
The Department is working closely with NHS England to consider a range of options to ensure better quality and access to these important preventative services.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, on what annual percentage increases in healthcare demand is the 10 Year Heath Plan based.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan is not based on a specific percentage growth rate in demand for health care. Instead, backed by an additional £29 billion, the plan sets out how the health system will seize the opportunities provided by new technology, medicines, and innovation to deliver better care for all patients, no matter where they live or how much they earn, as well as better value for taxpayers.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in regard to page 12 of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations Patients Waiting to Access Innovative Therapies Indicator 2023 Survey, published in June 2024, which shows that 28 per cent of new medicines approved by the European Medicines Agency had full public availability for patients in England in 2019–2022, what assessment they have made of the impact of the uniform pricing policy on the full availability of new multi-indication medicines.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
In January 2025, following public consultation, NHS England published an updated NHS Commercial Framework for New Medicines. This framework includes the approach for assessing the eligibility for medicines that may treat multiple indications to qualify for indication-specific pricing, and the terms for doing so. Following consultation, NHS England adopted the following criteria for the use of indication-specific pricing:
- the medicine for the indication under consideration meets an unmet clinical need;
- the company can demonstrate with a high degree of confidence that uniform pricing would reduce the total revenue for a medicine across all indications;
- sufficient data is available within existing National Health Service systems to make such arrangements operationally feasible; and
- the cost-effective price is highly differentiated for all indications under consideration.
NHS England’s approach to indication-specific pricing has supported patient access to medicines for many new indications which would otherwise have been unavailable if the only alternative was a uniform price for all indications. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is able to recommend the vast majority of medicines for use in the NHS, including medicines licensed for multiple indications. The latest European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Association’s Patients Waiting to Access Innovative Therapies Indicator report 2024, published in May 2025, reports that the 37% of medicines licensed between 2020 and 2023 were fully available to NHS patients in England, compared with an European Union average of 29%.
As agreed under the terms of the Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access and Growth, and subsequently set out in the NHS England consultation response, indication-specific pricing agreements will continue to be reserved for medicines that are normally expected to have value propositions at or below the lower end of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s cost-effectiveness range.
The Life Sciences Sector Plan committed to faster patient access to medicines and reduced industry costs, while ensuring good value for the NHS. A new, proportionate approach to National Institute for Health and Care Excellence appraisals and indication-specific pricing will streamline access for multi-indication medicines with strong outcomes and low affordability risk. This will create a more agile, predictable commercial environment that supports investment into the United Kingdom.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in regard to the NHS commercial framework for new medicines, published on 29 January, whether they will consult on the principle to provide additional value for medicines at or below the lower end of the standard National Institute for Health and Care Excellence cost-effectiveness threshold range in the second phase of the review of that framework.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
In January 2025, following public consultation, NHS England published an updated NHS Commercial Framework for New Medicines. This framework includes the approach for assessing the eligibility for medicines that may treat multiple indications to qualify for indication-specific pricing, and the terms for doing so. Following consultation, NHS England adopted the following criteria for the use of indication-specific pricing:
- the medicine for the indication under consideration meets an unmet clinical need;
- the company can demonstrate with a high degree of confidence that uniform pricing would reduce the total revenue for a medicine across all indications;
- sufficient data is available within existing National Health Service systems to make such arrangements operationally feasible; and
- the cost-effective price is highly differentiated for all indications under consideration.
NHS England’s approach to indication-specific pricing has supported patient access to medicines for many new indications which would otherwise have been unavailable if the only alternative was a uniform price for all indications. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is able to recommend the vast majority of medicines for use in the NHS, including medicines licensed for multiple indications. The latest European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Association’s Patients Waiting to Access Innovative Therapies Indicator report 2024, published in May 2025, reports that the 37% of medicines licensed between 2020 and 2023 were fully available to NHS patients in England, compared with an European Union average of 29%.
As agreed under the terms of the Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access and Growth, and subsequently set out in the NHS England consultation response, indication-specific pricing agreements will continue to be reserved for medicines that are normally expected to have value propositions at or below the lower end of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s cost-effectiveness range.
The Life Sciences Sector Plan committed to faster patient access to medicines and reduced industry costs, while ensuring good value for the NHS. A new, proportionate approach to National Institute for Health and Care Excellence appraisals and indication-specific pricing will streamline access for multi-indication medicines with strong outcomes and low affordability risk. This will create a more agile, predictable commercial environment that supports investment into the United Kingdom.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support workers to train in new sectors when facing unemployment due to artificial intelligence.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
At the recent Spending Review, the government announced substantial investment in skills in England with an additional £1.2 billion by 2028/29. This includes supporting targeted skills packages for key sectors such as construction, digital and technology, engineering, and defence.
The government will provide approximately £1.4 billion in funding for the adult skills fund in the 2025/26 academic year. This includes funding the Free Courses for Jobs offer, which gives eligible adults the chance to access high value Level 3 qualifications for free, which can support them to gain higher wages or a better job.
The government will also support adult learners to retrain through our technical education offer, including through a range of apprenticeships and Skills Bootcamps. Our new levy-funded growth and skills offer will introduce greater flexibility to employers and learners in England.
From September 2026, learners will be able to apply for funding from the Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE), which will be the new student finance system for courses and modules starting from January 2027 onwards. The LLE will allow people to retrain, upskill and gain new qualifications across their working lives, at a time that is right for them, such as those returning from a career break.