theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_2
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_2

Sir Christopher Chope:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 5 March 2025 to Question 33850 on Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme: Coronavirus, how many of the 69 cases referred to the First-Tier Tribunal were (a) successful and (b) rejected; and how many have been outstanding for more than (i) three and (ii) six months. \p Ashley Dalton: Data from the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA), which administers the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme, shows that of the 69 claims identified in Question 33850:

Appeals to the First-Tier Tribunal are managed by the HM Courts and Tribunals Service, and therefore the NHSBSA must follow the directions and timescales specified by the HM Courts and Tribunals Service. The data is based on the date the HM Courts and Tribunals Service notified the NHSBSA of an appeal. The NHSBSA is not always provided the date the appellant made the appeal application to the HM Courts and Tribunals Service.
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_3
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_3

Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding his Department plans to provide for primary care services in each of the next three years. \p Stephen Kinnock: The Department’s settlement was announced at the 2025 Spending Review. The details of Spending Review budget allocations, inclusive of primary care services, within departments is still being determined for 2026/27 and we are working to provide the detail and certainty needed on future funding and spending plans. The budget allocations for 2027/28 and 2028/29 will be determined through the business planning rounds for the corresponding years and will tie back to the 2025 Spending Review settlement.
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_4
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_4

Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that (a) families and (b) carers can effectively (i) raise and (ii) resolve complaints about adult social care provision in Surrey Heath constituency. \p Stephen Kinnock: The Government recognises the vital roles that unpaid carers and families play. The Government is committed to supporting them, including by ensuring that they can effectively raise and resolve complaints about adult social care, including in Surrey Heath.

By law, all health and social care services must have a procedure for dealing efficiently with complaints. Anyone receiving adult social care or their family, carer, or representative has the right to complain about decisions, service delivery, or related issues.

If an individual is not satisfied with the way a provider or local authority has dealt with a complaint, they may escalate it to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) who can investigate individual concerns. The LGSCO is the independent complaints lead for adult social care and investigates complaints from those receiving social care.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator for health and social care in England. Whilst the CQC is unable to investigate individual complaints, the CQC encourages the public to “share their experience” through an online feedback mechanism which allows them to raise concerns about the services they receive from providers. Any such cases shared with the CQC will be investigated as part of its ongoing monitoring of providers.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_5

Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure equitable regional access to hospice care. \p Stephen Kinnock: Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the commissioning of palliative care and end of life care services, to meet the needs of their local populations. Whilst the majority of palliative care and end of life care is provided by National Health Service staff and services, we recognise the vital part that voluntary sector organisations, including hospices, also play in providing support to people at the end of life and their loved ones.

However, due to the way the hospice movement organically grew, hospice locations were largely not planned with a view to providing even access across the country or to prioritise areas of greatest need based on demographics. Therefore, there are inequalities in access to hospice services, especially for those living in rural or socio-economically deprived areas.

We are supporting the hospice sector with a £100 million capital funding boost for eligible adult and children’s hospices in England to ensure they have the best physical environment for care.

We are also providing £26 million in revenue funding to support children and young people’s hospices for 2025/26.  I can also now confirm the continuation of this vital funding for the three years of the next Spending Review period, from 2026/27 to 2028/29 inclusive. This funding will see approximately £26 million, adjusted for inflation, allocated to children and young people’s hospices in England each year, via their local ICB on behalf of NHS England, as happened in 2024/25 and 2025/26.  This amounts to approximately £80 million over the next three years.

More widely, I have tasked officials to look at how to improve the access, quality, and sustainability of all-age palliative care and end of life care in line with the 10-Year Health Plan.
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_6
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_6

Jess Brown-Fuller:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to (a) review and (b) update NHS Continuing Healthcare. \p Stephen Kinnock: I have asked my officials to work with partners including NHS England to review how National Health Service Continuing Healthcare (CHC) is being implemented and explore how this could be improved.

The Department continues to work with our partners to deliver CHC policy effectively and to ensure that people who are eligible receive it in a timely manner. Integrated care boards, who are responsible for the implementation of CHC with oversight from NHS England, must continue to have regard to our statutory guidance, the National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care. This is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-framework-for-nhs-continuing-healthcare-and-nhs-funded-nursing-care
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_8
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_8

Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to monitor the impact of Children and Young People’s Continuing Care on hospital admissions among children with complex health needs. \p Stephen Kinnock: Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the provision and commissioning of services to meet the needs of their local populations. NHS England supports ICBs to implement the National Framework for Children and Young People’s Continuing Care, and it has now started to collect Children and Young People’s Continuing Care activity data as part of the All-age Continuing Care Patient Level Dataset which launched on 1 April 2025, and which is available at the following link:

https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/data-collections-and-data-sets/data-sets/all-age-continuing-care-data-set/about-the-all-age-continuing-care-data-set

National data on Children and Young People’s Continuing Care is not yet available. NHS England data shows that the total number of adults aged 18 years old and over in England who are eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC) was 50,281 as of the last day of Quarter one of 2025/26. The CHC’s Statistical Press Release for Quarter one of 2025/26 is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/08/CHC_Statistical_Press_Release_Q1_2025_26_DQ55g.pdf

The relationship between Children and Young People’s Continuing Care and hospital admissions is not monitored nationally and the data on the numbers of children in receipt of Children and Young People’s Continuing Care packages and the cost of the packages by region is not held centrally. ICBs may hold relevant information as they have a statutory duty to meet the reasonable needs of an individual. For health services, the duty is that of Sections 3 to 6 of the NHS Act 2006 and accompanying regulations.
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_9
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_9

Mr Louie French:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to help ensure the continuity of the (a) National Gambling Helpline and (b) other national gambling harms charities. \p Ashley Dalton: The introduction of the new statutory levy on gambling operators, which came into effect in April 2025, guarantees independent, sustainable funding for the research, prevention, and treatment of gambling-related harms.

The Government recognises the important role national gambling harm charities play in providing help and support for those experiencing gambling-related harms. To ensure the continuity of these services during the transition to the levy system, GambleAware will continue to commission existing treatment and support services until 31 March 2026.

From 1 April 2026, NHS England will assume responsibility for commissioning the full gambling harms treatment pathway in England. Organisations, including those who operate the National Gambling Helpline, will be permitted to apply for ringfenced levy funding, provided they comply with the stated eligibility requirements. NHS England is actively working to confirm future commissioning arrangements and is committed to keeping stakeholders informed, with a further update expected in November.

The Office for Improvement and Disparities, as the prevention commissioner for England under the levy, intends to launch a competitive grant process for 2026/27 to provide funding for the voluntary sector to deliver effective prevention activity. Further details will be confirmed in November 2025.
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_10
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_10

Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the number of people who are out of work due to chronic arthritic pain. \p Ashley Dalton: We recognise the effect that poor health can have on economic inactivity and that the economy relies on a healthy population.

The 10-Year Health Plan will support people with musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions like arthritis to better manage their condition and access services and support through the three shifts: from hospital to community; from analogue to digital; and from sickness to prevention. For example, the shift from hospital to community will enable people with MSK conditions to access a range of additional services to support the management of their condition and treatment closer to home.

In line with this shift, the Government has funded NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time programme to deploy their proven Further Faster model for MSK community services. The programme has been designed to reduce waiting times for community MSK appointments and to enhance access to quality treatment, working with integrated care board leaders to improve data and metrics and referral pathways to wider support services.

We are working together to further develop the approach to better enable integrated care systems to commission the delivery of high quality MSK services in the community, which will benefit patients now and into the future.

Additionally, the Further Faster 20 scheme, which is an extension of the existing Further Faster Programme, is designed to help reduce waiting lists across multiple specialities at 20 targeted hospital trusts located in areas with the highest levels of economic inactivity.
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_11
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_11

Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to (a) increase capacity and (b) reduce inequalities in accessing respiratory diagnoses. \p Karin Smyth: The Government is committed to increasing the capacity of respiratory services and is improving access to these services through new community diagnostic centres (CDCs).

All standard and large CDCs are required to offer diagnostic respiratory tests such as spirometry and full lung function tests as part of their core testing offer.

The 2025/26 capital guidance confirmed that £1.65 billion of capital funding is being allocated to support National Health Service performance across secondary and emergency care across 2025/26 more broadly. This includes funding to enable the completion of 2024/25 CDC schemes, as well as to expand existing and build new CDCs.
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_12
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_12

Connor Naismith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has issued guidance that parking charges at NHS facilities are (a) equitable, (b) proportionate to the cost of (i) maintaining and (ii) improving parking facilities and (c) not to be used to subsidise clinical services. \p Karin Smyth: Decisions on the provision of car parking are made locally by National Health Service organisations to be consistent with the national guidance provided by NHS England.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nhs-patient-visitor-and-staff-car-parking-principles/nhs-patient-visitor-and-staff-car-parking-principles

This guidance requires free parking to the four free groups: disabled people; frequent outpatient attenders; parents of sick children staying overnight; and staff working night shifts. In addition, parking charges are expected to be fair for the area. Where car parking income exceeds the costs of providing the parking, the excess income is invested into NHS services.

Local charging for NHS parking will depend on a number of local factors including the availability and cost of parking, the demands for parking, for instance the pressure of parking from shopping, and the availability of alternative forms of transport such as public transport and NHS shuttle buses services.
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_13
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to page 130 of the Strategic Defence Review, published on 2 June 2025, how many and what proportion of reserves work in the NHS for each of the three services. \p Karin Smyth: The Department does not hold the information requested.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_14

Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the adequacy of research funding allocated to pancreatic cancer given its rates of (a) mortality, (b) survival and (c) late diagnosis; and whether he plans to increase that funding. \p Dr Zubir Ahmed: 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.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_15

Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to include Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust in the National maternity and neonatal investigation; and whether she plans to include bereaved families in Shropshire in the investigation. \p Karin Smyth: 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.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_16

Edward Argar:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the total budget was for Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Integrated Care Board in (a) 2023-24, (b) 2024-2025 and (c) 2025-6 financial years. \p Karin Smyth: 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.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_17

Edward Argar:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the total full FTE headcount employed by Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland ICS was in (a) 2023, (b) 2024 and (c) 2025 as at 1st January of each year. \p Karin Smyth: 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.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_18

Edward Argar:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions Ministers in his Department have had with the Mayor of Leicester on local government reorganisation; and on what dates since 1 January 2025. \p Karin Smyth: 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.
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_19
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_19

Dr Caroline Johnson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to add additional Trusts to the National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation following the removal of (a) Shropshire and (b) Leeds. \p Karin Smyth: 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.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_20

Dr Caroline Johnson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the 2023 2023 UK surgical workforce census report compiled by the Royal College of Surgeons, what steps he is taking to expand surgical training capacity in the context of bottlenecks in posts. \p Karin Smyth: 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.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_21

Dr Caroline Johnson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many additional surgical hubs are due to (a) open and (b) be built in the next 12 months. \p Karin Smyth: 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.
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_22
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_22

Gareth Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many patients were seen within (a) one, (b) two and (c) four hours at accident and emergency in the London North West University Hospital in each quarter since 2022-23. \p Karin Smyth: The data is not available in the format requested. NHS England does not publish data on patients seen within one or two hours. The only data available is for patients seen within four hours.

The information requested for London North West University Hospital is only collected at trust level. There is currently no publicly available data at site level. The following table shows the four-hour performance in each quarter since 2022/23 for the London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust:

Quarters

Percentage of total accident and emergency attendances admitted, transferred, or discharged within four hours

Patient attendances over four hours

Quarter 1 of 2022/23

73.4%

64,288

Quarter 2 of 2022/23

69.0%

46,653

Quarter 3 of 2022/23

65.7%

59,585

Quarter 4 of 2022/23

73.4%

56,395

Quarter 1 of 2023/24

76.5%

60,390

Quarter 2 of 2023/24

71.9%

55,810

Quarter 3 of 2023/24

70.9%

57,973

Quarter 4 of 2023/24

76.1%

64,384

Quarter 1 of 2024/25

75.3%

64,571

Quarter 2 of 2024/25

77.4%

62,920

Quarter 3 of 2024/25

71.8%

62,321

Quarter 4 of 2024/25

75.2%

63,637

Quarter 1 of 2025/26

76.9%

67,024

Quarter 2 of 2025/26

76.5%

66,344

Source: Hospital Accident and Emergency Activity, available at the following link: https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/hospital-accident--emergency-activity
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UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_23

Lee Pitcher:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure equitable access England to (a) diagnosis, (b) treatment and (c) specialist rehabilitation services for patients with Functional Neurological Disorder. \p Ashley Dalton: The majority of services for people with neurological conditions, including functional neurological disorder (FND), are commissioned locally. Integrated care board (ICB) commissioners are best placed to configure services for their populations and are supported by clinical guidance.

More widely, NHS England’s Neuroscience Transformation Programme is supporting ICBs to deliver the right service, at the right time for all neurology patients, which includes providing care closer to home.

NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology and RightCare Toolkits, including the Progressive Neurological Conditions Toolkit, the Headache and Migraine Toolkit, and the Epilepsy Toolkit, aim to improve care for patients with neurological conditions by reducing variation.

On 15 October 2025, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence published new guidance, titled Rehabilitation for chronic neurological disorders including acquired brain injury. The guideline covers rehabilitation in all settings for children, young people, and adults with a chronic neurological disorder, neurological impairment, or disabling neurological symptoms resulting from acquired brain injury, spinal cord injury, peripheral nerve disorder, progressive neurological disease, or FND. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/indevelopment/gid-ng10181
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Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of a national multi-cancer case finding programme to identify individuals at high risk of (a) pancreatic cancer and (b) all other cancers. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS England is developing case-finding approaches for less survivable cancers where the evidence supports this, including pancreatic cancer.

This work includes the development of a public-facing Family History Checker in partnership with Pancreatic Cancer UK, which enables individuals and families affected by pancreatic cancer to assess inherited risk. Those identified as being at risk are referred directly to the European Registry of Hereditary Pancreatic Diseases research trial. Referrals can be made by any healthcare professional or by individuals via self-referral, contributing to a more consistent and centralised approach to case-finding.

The National Disease Registration Service has launched the National Inherited Cancer Predisposition Register, which identifies individuals at increased inherited risk of a wide range of cancers, including pancreatic cancer. The register supports targeted screening and surveillance and will act as an electronic referral route into national screening programmes where these exist.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_25

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the consistent implementation of (a) Non-Specific Symptom pathways, (b) GP direct access and (c) NHS England Best Practice Timed Pathways to ensure (i) faster and (ii) earlier diagnosis of people with pancreatic cancer. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS England has completed the national roll-out of non-specific symptom (NSS) pathways to support faster diagnosis of cancer in patients who present with symptoms that do not align with a single cancer site.

We are investing an additional £1.1 billion in general practices (GPs), bringing total GP Contract spend to £13.4 billion in 2025/26, the biggest increase in over a decade. NHS England has also expanded GP direct access to diagnostic tests, enabling faster investigation of concerning symptoms.

The National Health Service has also launched a new £2 million programme which is funding 300 GPs to identify pancreatic cancer early by screening high-risk patients over 60 years old with new diabetes diagnoses and unexplained weight loss for urgent testing.

NHS England continues to implement Best Practice Timed Pathways to ensure consistent and faster diagnosis in line with the Faster Diagnosis Standard. Alongside this, it is working with Pancreatic Cancer UK on a Family History Checker to help individuals assess inherited risk, and has launched the National Inherited Cancer Predisposition Register, which supports earlier identification and screening of high-risk individuals.
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_26
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_26

Laurence Turner:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the total amount of payment is through the Vaccine Damage Payments Scheme; and how much has been paid in each year for which figures are available. \p Ashley Dalton: The Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme provides a one-off, tax-free payment of £120,000 to claimants who have been found, in rare cases and on the balance of probabilities, to have been severely disabled, 60% or more, by certain vaccines for a disease listed in the Vaccine Damage Payments Act 1979.

The following table shows the payments made through the Vaccine Damage Payments Scheme since 2021/22, when NHS Business Services Authority took over the administration of the scheme, to 2025/26:

Year

Total amount paid

2021/22

£240,000

2022/23

£8,640,000

2023/24

£11,880,000

2024/25

£6,480,000

2025/26

£2,160,000

Total

£29,400,000

Note: data for 2025/26 is as of the end of September 2025, as this is the latest data available.
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_27
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_27

Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many sick notes have been issued by GPs in the last 12 months. \p Ashley Dalton: The sick note was replaced by the fit note in 2010. Since 2022, fit notes can be issued by doctors, registered nurses, occupational therapists, pharmacists, and physiotherapists.

The latest data published by NHS England shows that out of the 10,974,495 fit notes issued electronically in primary care in England between January and December 2024, 9,898,344 were issued by general practitioners (GPs). This means that GPs issued 90.2% of these fit notes.

Data is only available for fit notes issued electronically within primary care in England, meaning that paper fit notes or fit notes issued in hospitals are not included in these figures. The published statistics can be found at the following link:

https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/fit-notes-issued-by-gp-practices

Updated figures will be published by NHS England on 23 October and will provide fit note data up to June 2025.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_28

Perran Moon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to increase the number of defibrillators at (a) care homes, (b) sheltered housing and (c) warden controlled properties. \p Ashley Dalton: The provision of defibrillators is a matter for local communities, working in partnership with local organisations and charities.

Decisions as to whether automated external defibrillators should be fitted is a matter for the owners of those properties, with regard to any legal requirements on the operation of those premises.
wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_29
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_29

Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to help reduce health inequalities in Newton Abbot constituency. \p Ashley Dalton: The Government is committed to building a fairer Britain, to ensure people can live well for longer, and spend less time in ill health. Our reimagined National Health Service will be designed to tackle inequalities in both access and outcomes, as well as to give everyone, no matter who they are or where they come from, the means to engage with the NHS on their own terms.

The NHS South West Regional Team, whose area includes Newton Abbot, provides assurance and support on inequalities, system performance, and productivity. Engagement with key stakeholders in the region is undertaken through the Regional Reducing Inequalities Group.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_30

Sammy Wilson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had recent discussions with his EU counterparts on the legality of the proposed generational smoking ban in Northern Ireland. \p Ashley Dalton: In preparation of the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, the Government has considered all its domestic and international obligations. The Government engages with the European Union and member states on a wide variety of issues, including matters relating to Northern Ireland. This engagement is confidential.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-10-28 conversation_31

Gareth Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people in (a) Harrow, (b) Barnet, (c) Brent, (d) England and (e) London were diagnosed with (i) Stage One, (ii) Stage 2, (iii) Stage 3 and (iv) Stage 4 cancer in (A) 2022-23, (B) 2023-24 and (C) 2024-25. \p Ashley Dalton: The National Disease Registration Service is the cancer registry for England, and is available at the following link:

https://digital.nhs.uk/ndrs

Data can be broken down by stage as well as by geographical location. However, data is not available by local authority. Currently, data is available up to 2022.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

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Danny Beales:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of minimally invasive therapies for the less survivable cancers. \p Ashley Dalton: Ongoing research is exploring the potential of minimally invasive cancer therapies for less survivable cancers. This includes non-invasive liver cancer treatments that use ultrasound technology to destroy tumours without surgery, scalpels, or radiation, with minimal damage to surrounding organs.

The adoption of new treatments, including minimally invasive cancer treatments for less survivable cancers, into the National Health Service in England is generally the result of National Institution of Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidance and/or commissioner decisions.

The NHS has launched a new £2 million programme which is funding 300 general practices to identify pancreatic cancer early by screening high-risk patients over 60 years old with new diabetes diagnoses and unexplained weight loss for urgent testing.

Both NHS England and the integrated care boards are required to put in place access for any treatment that carries a positive recommendation from the Technology Appraisal programme, operated by NICE. Agreements on timelines and funding for making therapies available on the NHS can vary, with implementation supported by the service readiness assessment and the development of additional capacity where necessary.
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Natalie Fleet:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how his Department is ensuring that NHS weight management services comply with NICE guidance on the use of (a) established community-based programmes and (b) combined behavioural and pharmacological support for obesity. \p Ashley Dalton: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) guidance on overweight and obesity management sets out the core components and standards for community-based weight management programmes, including multi-component behavioural interventions. Commissioning organisations, including local integrated care boards (ICBs), local authorities, and NHS England, and providers are expected to take the guidance into account when designing and delivering services. Support for compliance includes:

- detailed advice within the NICE guidance itself on the structure and content of effective community-based interventions;

- implementation support toolkits and practical guides from NICE; and

- funding through NHS England allocations for ICBs and the Public Health Grant for local authorities.

NICE guidance recommends that pharmacological treatments for obesity should only be offered alongside behavioural interventions, to provide ‘wraparound care’. ICBs have a legal duty to make NICE-recommended medicines available and are expected to ensure that patients prescribed these medicines also receive appropriate behavioural and lifestyle support. There is further support for ICBs in addition to that listed above, including:

- NHS England’s interim commissioning guidance and a centrally funded wraparound care service, Healthier You: Behavioural Support for Obesity Prescribing, with procurement underway for a longer-term offer; and

- additional funding to support the delivery of services within primary care and the cost of obesity medicines in line with the interim commissioning background.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

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Sammy Wilson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department (a) sought and (b) received legal advice on the compatibility of the generational smoking ban proposed in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill with the Windsor Framework, particularly in relation to Northern Ireland's regulatory alignment obligations. \p Ashley Dalton: In preparation of the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, the Government has considered all its domestic and international obligations. The Government does not disclose whether it has sought or received legal advice.
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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help improve the diagnosis of arthritis in young people. \p Ashley Dalton: Healthcare in Northern Ireland is devolved, and is therefore a matter for the Northern Ireland Executive. In England, to support health and care professionals in the early diagnosis and management of arthritis, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has published expert guidance for both rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, which are available, respectively, at the following two links:

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng100

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng226

The Royal College of General Practitioners also has a range of e-learning materials to support general practitioners and other primary care professionals in the diagnosis and management of arthritis, including a rheumatoid arthritis hub and an osteoarthritis hub, which are both available, respectively, at the following two links:

https://elearning.rcgp.org.uk/course/view.php?id=496

https://elearning.rcgp.org.uk/course/view.php?id=580

We are working to deliver the Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) Musculoskeletal Community Delivery Programme. GIRFT teams are working with integrated care board leaders to further reduce MSK community waiting times, including for young people with arthritis, and improve data and metrics, and referral pathways to wider support services.

NHS England Specialised Commissioning has a Clinical Reference Group for specialised paediatric rheumatology, which has produced a service specification for these services. This service specification names juvenile idiopathic arthritis as one of the conditions that should be managed by a specialist paediatric rheumatology team. It also sets out that specialised paediatric rheumatology teams will provide transitional care to facilitate transfer and ongoing care in adult rheumatology. Transitional care planning will involve paediatric rheumatology teams, adult rheumatology teams and local hospitals under a shared care arrangement. Specialised paediatric rheumatology services are expected to be commissioned in line with this service specification.

Our recently published 10-Year Health Plan outlines the three big shifts our National Health Service needs to be fit for the future: from hospital to community; from analogue to digital; and from sickness to prevention. All of these are relevant to improving arthritis care for young people in all parts of the country. More tests and scans delivered in the community, better joint working between services, and greater use of apps and wearable technology will all support young people, and their families to manage their long-term conditions, including arthritis, closer to home.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help support men to access PSA blood tests on the NHS to check for early warning signs of prostate cancer. \p Ashley Dalton: The Department continues to work with NHS England in the ongoing Help Us Help You Campaigns to raise awareness of prostate cancer and ensure men have access to the information and services they need to make informed decisions about their health.

Men who are concerned about their risk of prostate cancer, or who are experiencing symptoms, are encouraged to discuss prostate specific antigen (PSA) testing with their general practitioner (GP). The National Institute for of Health and Care Excellence has developed guidance for referring patients if prostate cancer is suspected after a physical examination using the suspected cancer referral pathway. The guidance advises clinicians to consider PSA testing only for those with certain symptoms outlined in the guidance.

The Government also published guidance for GP’s on advising men without symptoms of prostate cancer who ask about the PSA test. The guidance advises GPs should use their clinical judgement to manage asymptomatic men and those who they consider to be at increased risk of prostate cancer.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of changes to the Nutrient Profile Model on the availability of healthier (a) food and (b) drink products. \p Ashley Dalton: As set out in our 10-Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future, we will take decisive action on the obesity crisis, easing the strain on our National Health Service and creating the healthiest generation of children ever. We announced that we would update the nutrient profiling model (NPM) 2004/05, which underpins the advertising restrictions and promotion restrictions on less healthy food and drink policies so that it reflects the latest dietary recommendations.

We will consult on applying the updated NPM to these policies and will publish an impact assessment in due course.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

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Danny Beales:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an estimate of the potential impact of prescribing abiraterone in England using the eligibility criteria used in (a) Scotland and (b) Wales on the number of premature deaths from high-risk, non-metastatic prostate cancer. \p Dr Zubir Ahmed: NHS England estimates that the number of eligible patients in England is between 7,500 and 9,500 per year. This is based on the same eligibility criteria as are used in Scotland and Wales.

NHS England has not completed any specific work to estimate the potential impact of prescribing abiraterone in England using the eligibility criteria used in Scotland and Wales on the number of premature deaths from high-risk, non-metastatic prostate cancer. However, the policy was ranked as the top priority for routine commissioning at the Clinical Priorities Advisory Group Prioritisation Meeting in 2024/25, based upon the clinical benefit, which included evidence that demonstrated statistically significantly fewer deaths with abiraterone and androgen deprivation therapy versus androgen deprivation therapy alone.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

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Danny Beales:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an estimate of the (a) cost per patient, (b) number of eligible patients, (c) net cost, (d) incremental quality-adjusted life years gained and (e) incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of extending abiraterone access to high-risk, non-metastatic prostate cancer patients in England. \p Dr Zubir Ahmed: NHS England is unable to provide information related to the cost per patient as disclosure of this information could be used to identify the discounted price that we have agreed and would prejudice the commercial interests of both NHS England and the supplier.

The number of patients eligible for abiraterone for the treatment of high-risk, non-metastatic prostate cancer is between 7,500 and 9,500 per year.

The total net cost of the policy, including the drug cost, to NHS England is estimated to be approximately £49.36 million over five years.

NHS England has not calculated the incremental quality-adjusted life years gained or the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio because NHS England uses a relative prioritisation process for policy propositions that require funding in line with the published NHS England Specialised Commissioning Service Development Policy, which is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/B0026_NHS-England-Specialised-Commissioning-Service-Development-Policy.pdf
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-28)

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Danny Beales:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on the estimate made by (a) NHS England, (b) NHS Wales and (c) NHS Scotland of the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio for abiraterone in high-risk, non-metastatic prostate cancer. \p Dr Zubir Ahmed: NHS England has not calculated the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio for any policy proposition because NHS England uses a relative prioritisation process for policy propositions that require funding in line with the published NHS England Specialised Commissioning Service Development Policy, a copy of which is attached.

Additional Document (pdf, 293.9KB)
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John Slinger:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to raise awareness among men and boys about the mental health support available to them. \p Dr Zubir Ahmed: The 10-Year Health Plan sets out ambitious plans to transform mental health services to improve access and treatment, and to promote good mental health and wellbeing for men and boys. The Government is committed to working beyond the health system to create an environment that promotes good mental health, prevents people from developing mental health problems, and improves the lives of people living with a mental health problem.

We are developing a Men's Health Strategy which will seek to improve the health and wellbeing of all men in England, and which will be informed by a call for evidence. This includes finding the right ways to promote healthier behaviours, improving outcomes for health conditions that hit men harder, and improving engagement with healthcare. The call for evidence closed on 17 July 2025. The responses are informing the development of the strategy.